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Guest Post: The Old Man And The Sea - 2011
Submitted by Jim Quinn of The Burning Platform
The Old Man And The Sea - 2011
“The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; the second is war. Both bring a temporary prosperity; both bring a permanent ruin. But both are the refuge of political and economic opportunists.” – Ernest Hemingway
“Though the Federal Reserve policy harms the average American, it benefits those in a position to take advantage of the cycles in monetary policy. The main beneficiaries are those who receive access to artificially inflated money and/or credit before the inflationary effects of the policy impact the entire economy. Federal Reserve policies also benefit big spending politicians who use the inflated currency created by the Fed to hide the true costs of the welfare-warfare state.” – Ron Paul
Ernest Hemingway and Ron Paul never met. Ron Paul was completing medical school in 1961 when Hemingway committed suicide at his home in Idaho. I think they would have hit it off. I stumbled across the quote from Hemingway above. Those words could have come directly out of the mouth of Ron Paul. Both men spent their whole lives seeking the truth and presenting their ideas in a blunt straightforward manner. Hemingway is one of the most renowned writers in American history, with classics such as A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls, and The Sun Also Rises to his credit. He won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1954. He constructed a new literary style characterized by lean, hard, sparse dialogue. He influenced literature and young authors for decades. As a teenager I was immediately drawn to his gritty realistic novels. There was no nonsense to his novels. They always involved man’s struggle against death and hardship. Most of his best work was done in the 1920s and 1930s, but he produced one of his finest works in 1951 towards the end of his life. Hemingway won the Pulitzer Prize for his story about an epic battle between an old man and a great marlin.
Ernest Hemingway was bigger than life. Hemingway’s real life reads like a Stephen Spielberg Indiana Jones movie. He was an ambulance driver in World War I, where he was seriously wounded. He had four wives. He lived in Paris during the 1920s associating with other famous “Lost Generation” writers. He was a correspondent during the Spanish Civil War and World War II, while also joining in the fighting. He survived two plane crashes and multiple car accidents. He battled alcoholism and mental illness, eventually taking his own life, just as his father, brother and sister had done before him. His novels reflected the pain, struggle and inevitability of death that permeated his own life.
The Old Man and the Sea is a novel about Santiago, an old fisherman whose life is approaching its conclusion, and his final heroic struggle against a great marlin and the evil sharks that ultimately devour his prize. The mark of a great writer is the ability to tell a story that means many things to many people. Hemingway described his aim in writing this novel:
“No good book has ever been written that has in it symbols arrived at beforehand and stuck in. … I tried to make a real old man, a real boy, a real sea and a real fish and real sharks. But if I made them good and true enough they would mean many things.”
His novels always had a gritty reality to them. This particular novel is rich with symbolism and life lessons that are timeless and relevant today. The plot of the story is quite basic, but the character analysis reveals much deeper insights. For eighty-four days, Santiago, an aged Cuban fisherman, has set out to sea and returned empty-handed. So strikingly unlucky is he that the parents of his young, devoted apprentice and friend, Manolin, have forced the boy to leave the old man in order to fish in a more prosperous boat. On the eighty-fifth day he decides to sail far into the Gulf Stream past where most fishermen would dare venture alone. A big fish, which he knows is a marlin, takes the bait that Santiago has placed one hundred fathoms deep in the waters. The old man expertly hooks the fish, but he cannot pull it in. Instead, the fish begins to pull the boat.
Unable to tie the line fast to the boat for fear the fish would snap a taut line, the old man bears the strain of the line with his shoulders, back, and hands, ready to give slack should the marlin make a run. The great fish pulls the boat for two straight days. The entire time, Santiago endures constant pain from the fishing line. Whenever the fish lunges, leaps, or makes a dash for freedom, the cord cuts Santiago badly. Although wounded and weary, the old man feels a deep empathy and admiration for the marlin, his brother in suffering, strength, and resolve. On the third day, the fish tires and Santiago is able to kill him with his harpoon. He lashes it to the side of the boat and begins the long journey home.
As Santiago navigates toward his destination, the marlin’s blood leaves a trail in the water and attracts sharks. The first to attack is a great mako shark, which Santiago manages to slay with the harpoon. In the struggle, the old man loses the harpoon, which leaves him vulnerable to more shark attacks. The vicious predator sharks continuously attack Santiago’s trophy and despite killing several of the sharks, his battle became ultimately hopeless. He fights a gallant fight, revealing man’s finest qualities of bravery, confidence, courage, patience, optimism, and intelligence during the struggle.
The scavengers devour the marlin’s precious meat, leaving only skeleton, head, and tail. Santiago chastises himself for going “out too far,” and for sacrificing his great and worthy opponent. He arrives home before daybreak, stumbles back to his shack, and sleeps very deeply. The next morning, a crowd of amazed fishermen gathers around the skeletal carcass of the fish, which is still lashed to the boat. Manolin, who had been worried sick over the old man’s absence, is moved to tears when he finds Santiago safe in his bed. The boy fetches the old man some coffee and the daily papers with the baseball scores, and watches him sleep. When the old man awakens, the two agree to fish as partners once more. The old man returns to sleep and dreams his usual dream of lions at play on the beaches of Africa.
Sadness, resignation and the inevitability of death permeate the pages of this brilliant novel. But it is grace under pressure in the face of overwhelming odds that is the true message Hemingway leaves with the reader. There is no avoiding death, but the critical test of mankind is how you live your life and how you endure the suffering and pain that are inflicted upon you.
The Honor in Struggle, Defeat & Death
“But man is not made for defeat,” he said. “A man can be destroyed but not defeated.” – Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea
“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” - Ernest Hemingway
Life is a journey. At the end of every worldly journey, death awaits. That is a certainty. The ending will be the same for everyone who walks this earth. What matters is the course chosen on the voyage through life. The vast sea represents life’s journey, with its ebbs, flows, and storms that must be navigated. In Hemingway’s portrait of the world, death is inevitable, but the finest men will nonetheless refuse to give in to its power. In both the sea and in life, there are a number of possibilities that lie hidden from the common eye; some are gifts to be treasured and some are problems to be defeated. Neither will be found unless man embarks upon the journey. If man is lucky enough to discover a treasure he must fight until death to retain it; if man is unlucky enough to discover an evil lurking underneath the surface of the sea, he must fight it bravely and nobly until the end. In either case, it is the struggle that is all- important, and a man obtains the status of hero if he battles the sea (life) with grace under pressure. The only way to obtain the status of hero is to set sail on the uncertain sea of life.
Ron Paul, trained as a doctor in the early 1960s, served his country as an Air Force flight surgeon from 1963 through 1968 during the Vietnam War. He’s been married for 54 years and has raised five children. He has delivered 4,000 babies during his medical career, while routinely providing free care to poor patients and refusing to accept Medicare or Medicaid payments. He has also refused to accept a government pension, seeing it as immoral and hypocritical. He could have spent his life running his medical practice, playing by government mandated rules, and becoming a multi-millionaire. Instead he chose to embark on an uncertain journey into the sea of Washington politics.
He decided to begin his struggle against tyranny, big government and currency debasement by the Federal Reserve on August 15, 1971. While still a medical resident during the 1960s, Paul was influenced by Friedrich Hayek’s The Road to Serfdom, which led him to read many publications by Ludwig von Mises. He became acquainted with economists Hans Sennholz and Murray Rothbard, and credits them with his interest in the study of economics. He came to believe what the Austrian school economists wrote was confirmed when President Richard Nixon “closed the gold window” by implementing the U.S. dollar’s complete departure from the gold standard. On that day, the young physician decided to enter the rough treacherous seas of politics, saying later, “After that day, all money would be political money rather than money of real value.”
Winning and losing are not what is important in life, as we all will lose out to death in the end. It is the honor gained during the struggle that matters. It’s the legacy we leave for future generations. Did we fight the good fight, or did we sit idly by while life passed by? Did your life mean something to someone? You can stay safely on the shore or you can jump into your skiff and sail into the deep water and conquer your marlin. Both Santiago and the marlin display qualities of pride, honor, and courage, and both are subject to the same eternal law: they must kill or be killed. As Santiago reflects when he observes the weary warbler fly toward shore, where it will inescapably meet the hawk, the world is filled with marauders, and no living thing can escape the unavoidable struggle that will lead to its demise. Man and fish will struggle to the death, just as ravenous sharks will ravage an old man’s prize catch.
Ron Paul chose to join the struggle in 1976 when he was elected a Congressman from Texas for the first time. His years in Washington have been a never ending struggle against corruption, the military industrial complex, and the Federal Reserve currency manipulators. He has been a lone fisherman fighting for truth and liberty for over three decades. We are all pulled by our own individual marlins. Ron Paul has endured scorn and derision, much like Santiago endured from the other fishermen after going eighty four days without a catch. He has always stayed focused on the important issues that have led to the relentless decline of the American Empire: liberty versus security, freedom versus government control, and sound money versus persistent Federal Reserve created inflation. He has fought forces within his own party and in the opposition party. Despite fighting this battle alone for decades and being bloodied and battered, he has never given up the fight.
Hemingway’s novel suggests that it is possible to transcend natural law. The very inescapability of destruction creates the terms that allow an admirable man to rise above it. It is specifically through the endeavor to combat the inevitable that a man can prove himself. Indeed, a man can prove this resolve over and over through the worthiness of the adversary he chooses to fight. Santiago, though devastated at the end of the novel, is never defeated. Instead, he emerges as a dignified conqueror. Santiago’s struggle does not enable him to change man’s position in the world. Rather, it enables him to meet his most noble destiny.
After toiling fruitlessly for decades in the corrupt halls of Congress, surrounded by sharks, scorned by the corporate mainstream media pundits, and ignored by a public that has chosen security and delusions of credit based wealth over freedom and personal responsibility, Ron Paul chose to take on his greatest challenge – seeking the Presidency of the United States. The odds were overwhelmingly against him in 2008 and they are again in 2012. He is 76 years old and has every right to be sitting on his porch in Lake Jackson, Texas enjoying the twilight years of his life. He is driven by his sense of duty to future generations of our once great country. Even though deep in his heart he knows this struggle will end in defeat, he endures. He will continue to spread his message of liberty, freedom, sound money and an optimism that has attracted millions of young people to his worldview. Like Santiago, Ron Paul is determined to show “what a man can do and what a man endures.”
Pride as the Source of Greatness & Determination
“His choice had been to stay in the deep dark water far out beyond all snares and traps and treacheries. My choice was to go there to find him beyond all people. Beyond all people in the world. Now we are joined together and have been since noon. And no one to help either one of us.” – Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea
“The original American patriots were those individuals brave enough to resist with force the oppressive power of King George. I accept the definition of patriotism as that effort to resist oppressive state power. The true patriot is motivated by a sense of responsibility and out of self-interest for himself, his family, and the future of his country” – Ron Paul
The reason Santiago ventured into the deep waters of the Gulf, far past where a lesser fisherman would dare endeavor, was pride. It wasn’t the false pride of vanity, but the pride described by St. Augustine as “the love of one’s own excellence”. It was a virtuous pride revealing his greatness of soul and faith in his own abilities. Santiago’s pride ended up being his tragic flaw. He went out beyond the boundaries of a normal fisherman. In the end he was ruined, along with his prize, by the malevolent sharks. His run of bad luck was an affront to his pride and drove him to go beyond his limits.
Hemingway does not denounce Santiago for being full of pride. On the contrary, Santiago stands as testimony that pride inspires men to greatness. Because the old man concedes that he killed the mighty marlin largely out of pride, and because his capture of the marlin leads in turn to his heroic transcendence of defeat, pride becomes the source of Santiago’s greatest strength. Without a fierce sense of pride, that battle would never have been fought, or would have been forsaken before the end.
Ron Paul has a clear vision of the America our forefathers imagined. It is a vision of a people free from government control of every aspect of their lives. It’s a vision where the people keep what they earn and don’t pay half to government to be redistributed based upon a politician’s re-election aspirations. It’s a vision where the people are free to make their own choices and free to succeed or fail based on their own merits. It’s a vision where a truly free market exists and private bankers do not control and manipulate the currency. It’s a vision that calls for a strong national defense, not being the policeman to the world. It’s a vision where we follow the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law. It’s a vision where a limited government ensures the liberties and freedoms of the population. It’s a vision that calls for balanced budgets, sound money, and citizens and corporations accepting the consequences of their actions. If Santiago was a fisherman in the U.S. today, he would be required to have a license to fish, a permit for his boat, pay taxes on his catch, and probably have to release the marlin because it was endangered. Some government thug would have met Santiago at the dock and written him a ticket for being at sea too long and illegal feeding of sharks.
Is Ron Paul running for President because he desires power, control and glory? Anyone who has ever seen Ron Paul or heard him speak knows he is decent man desperately trying to convey his message:
“The most basic principle to being a free American is the notion that we as individuals are responsible for our own lives and decisions. We do not have the right to rob our neighbors to make up for our mistakes, neither does our neighbor have any right to tell us how to live, so long as we aren’t infringing on their rights. Freedom to make bad decisions is inherent in the freedom to make good ones. If we are only free to make good decisions, we are not really free.”
It is Ron Paul’s pride and unswerving belief in his message of freedom that inspires him to forge ahead in this grueling voyage destined to fail in the eyes of the media and political sharks that circle him, attacking at every opportunity. What these superficial toadies will never understand is that winning isn’t what is important to Ron Paul. It’s the message and the truth that matters. His pride enables him to endure. It is endurance that matters most in Hemingway’s conception of the world—a world in which death and destruction, as part of the natural order of things, are unavoidable. Hemingway seems to believe there are only two options: defeat or endurance until destruction; Santiago and Ron Paul have chosen the latter. Their stoic determination is mythic, nearly Christ-like in proportion.
Grace Under Pressure
“Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.” – Ernest Hemingway
“Freedom is not defined by safety. Freedom is defined by the ability of citizens to live without government interference. Government cannot create a world without risks, nor would we really wish to live in such a fictional place. Only a totalitarian society would even claim absolute safety as a worthy ideal, because it would require total state control over its citizens’ lives. Liberty has meaning only if we still believe in it when terrible things happen and a false government security blanket beckons.” – Ron Paul
Hemingway unquestionably likens Santiago to Christ throughout the novel. Like Christ, he is filled with goodness, patience, and humility. The forces of evil, however, are arrayed against Santiago, as seen when he fends off the sharks. Similarly, Christ had to clash with the wicked Pharisees in Jerusalem. Both men’s struggles end with shame and humiliation. Christ is betrayed, beaten, forced to carry his own cross, and is crucified, with arms outstretched and bleeding hands nailed to the cross. Santiago is betrayed by the sharks and his spirit crushed. Arriving home a disconsolate man, he struggles up the hill with his mast across his back, much like Christ bearing the cross up to Calvary. When he finally lies down in his bed, his arms are stretched straight out with palms up, and his hands are bleeding. It is an obvious reflection of Christ on the cross.
Having read hundreds of articles by Ron Paul and watched an equal number of interviews he has given over the last five years, his goodness, patience and humility shine through in every instance, along with his knowledge, diligence and charitable nature. The ideologues on the left wing and the right wing that dominate the dialogue in the mainstream media despise Dr. Paul and his message. They attempt to denigrate and humiliate him through their propaganda machines by twisting his words and misrepresenting his positions. They fear his message of individual responsibility and peaceful interaction with all nations. Those in power want to control our lives and force American values upon other nations. If Dr. Paul’s ideas were to take root with the American people, the era of corporate fascist big government would be over. The welfare – warfare state would begin to wither away. Dr. Paul, much like Santiago and Christ, never lashes out at the forces of evil confronting him along his journey. He is stoic and resolute as he spreads his message of truth, liberty and hope.
Santiago’s favorite baseball player was Joe DiMaggio. The Yankee Clipper was the greatest ballplayer of his era. His 56 game hitting streak has never been surpassed. He led his team to nine World Series victories in his thirteen seasons. He played much of his career with painful bone spurs in his heel. His father was a fisherman, as were generations before him. DiMaggio inspired Santiago with his leadership qualities and the determination to win, in spite of handicaps. The image of the baseball hero playing in pain gave Santiago renewed vigor and stamina to bear his own pain. Joe DiMaggio was later used by Simon & Garfunkel as a symbol of an America longing for its past glory:
Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio,
Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson.
Jolting Joe has left and gone away,
Hey hey hey.
– Mrs. Robinson
Joe DiMaggio was a symbol of excellence, perseverance, determination and leadership. He overcame adversity and triumphed despite his constant pain. Ron Paul has persevered through decades of obscurity and adversity. But, now his time has come. He is the intellectual godfather of the Tea Party movement. The neo-conservative element of the Republican Party has attempted to hijack the true Tea Party message of limited government, individual liberty, non-interventionism in foreign lands, freedom to live our lives without a smothering government bureaucracy dictating mandates at every turn, and a sound currency not controlled by a private banking cabal. As our country spirals downward due to the complete hijacking of our political system by the moneyed interests on Wall Street and the military industrial complex, leading us into never ending wars, Ron Paul’s message is finally striking a chord, especially among the young people who will be saddled with the crushing debt created by those in power. Despite the blatant lies and attempts to discredit and ignore him, Ron Paul charges forward with perseverance and courage unheard of in a man his age. He doesn’t do it for the glory, but for the unborn future generations who have no voice in their future.
Santiago dreams of lions throughout the novel first as cubs playing on the beach and ultimately as noble warriors, signifying great strength and a sense of renewal and vitality. They inspire confidence and optimism about the future. The old will give way to the young. The aged majestic warrior, through his example of bravery, courage and persistence, leaves the young warriors with a shining example of living life to its utmost and sacrificing personal glory for the good of the many. Ron Paul may not win the Presidency, but the example he has set for the young people of this country has laid the groundwork for a better tomorrow. His message of liberty, freedom and responsibility will resonate far after he has left this earth.
All of the symbols employed by Hemingway add to premise that life is an endless struggle with illusory rewards. In order to achieve nobility in life, a person must exhibit bravery, poise, courage, patience, optimism, and intelligence during the struggle. Then, even if the prize is lost, the person has won the battle, proving himself capable of retaining grace under pressure, the ultimate test of mankind. Ron Paul’s life is a shining example of grace under pressure. He has single handedly battled his great fish (Big Government, Big Finance, Big Military) for four decades with no helpers and many detractors. His journey is nearing its end. But it isn’t how it ends that matters. The journey is what separates the noble lion (Ron Paul) from the hyenas (corrupt politicians) and jackals (media). Ron’s message will not die. His son will carry the torch. The young people who have been inspired by his words and example will carry the torch. All of our lives will end the same way. The lesson to be learned from Ron Paul is how we should live our lives.
The ideologically myopic pundits that pass for the intelligentsia in the mainstream media scornfully declare that Ron Paul has no chance of winning, when all critical thinking citizens recognize that he has already won. They can destroy him, but he will not be defeated.
“Up the road, in his shack, the old man was sleeping again. He was still sleeping on his face and the boy was sitting by him watching him. The old man was dreaming about the lions.” - Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea
“Ideas are very important to the shaping of society. In fact, they are more powerful than bombings or armies or guns. And this is because ideas are capable of spreading without limit. They are behind all the choices we make. They can transform the world in a way that governments and armies cannot. Fighting for liberty with ideas makes more sense to me than fighting with guns or politics or political power. With ideas, we can make real change that lasts.” – Ron Paul
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Ron Paul???... what about Netflix and a better explanation from the CEO that went out last night...i like to call massive blunders reflections also. The 2008 election was a reflection.
http://blog.netflix.com/2011/09/explanation-and-some-reflections.html?ln...
I was Ron Paul when Ron Paul was Uncool.
But did you vote for him in the 1988 General? I did.
In 1988.. I was stoned, and I voted for GHWB....i am so sorry, so very, very sorry....
oh yeah!
well, i was cool before cool was cool...freezin in fact.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmZjD2UWoso
superfly, bitchez!
its a chance, i wanna take it, NOW...before someone ices me!,
janus
Not a Hemingway fan but like his answer to the question of how he went bankrupt. "Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly."
Whatever Ron Paul may or may not be, his son isn't carrying the flag for s**t. His son is a moron, plain and simple.
Wha? Why?
I will probably catch hell for this...
My first choice is Ron Paul because I love the man's integrity. I agree with about 80% of what he says.
My second and subsequent choices would be Barry Obama. Why!? I know, I know, but I firmly believe that if Perry or Bachman end up as POTUS, then they will spoil the name of conservatives for a generation because they really are that fucking bad.
THERE, I wrote it.
*Flame on
You got my positive vote Surly. I agree with you.
I will vote for Ron Paul and if he loses, I just won't vote because Bachman and Perry are poor choices.
At least with Obama, we know upfront he is incompetent and a loud mouth.
you are correct, dont fucking apologize
You have let others frame your thinking. The Republican Party has long ceased being conservative.
Who wrote this and why?
Here's a clue. The writer believes that building 7 fell down all by itself ... at free fall speed ... into it's footprint ... like an old Vegas casino.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWorDrTC0Qg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T2_nedORjw
To my three detractors - I'm sory, but it's true. The author believes two planes three buildings. See for yourself. Ask him.
Mr. Quinn, I enjoyed this piece, as I enjoy almost all of what you do. Ron Paul is a good, decent man with principled positions on just about every topic concievable. Once you understand his world view, you know exactly how he will respond. Is there any other politician that you can say that about? Imagine Perry or Obama listening to polls and spin doctors... I think Dr. Paul could give a rats ass about polls...
What major US politician will come out in favor of the US abstaining in the Palestine vote in the UN? Rick Perry, Obama, Palin, Bachman, Gingrich, maybe Eric Cantor? Only Ron Paul...
Here is a piece I wrote about Ron Paul...in a smiliar vein, bit shorter though..
Who is afraid of Ron Paul?
I didn't get my 'free sick bag' that should have come with this post.
Ron Paul may be honourable, but ...
Mr. Quinn,
In spite of your irish progenetors, it seems you have a fine mind. Just outstanding work, Mr. Quinn.
Janus was moved throughout. It is always reassuring to know that SOMEONE out there is still reading something other than james patterson or danielle steele. furthermore, you got it! you got it all!
i don't recall any salient theme that you passed over. top notch!!!
ps. for those who love great works of lit; janus, when he set to work on hemmingway (i read an author at a time; ALL his works, and then move to anothern), happened to start with the old man and the sea, and then worked his way back chronilogically. it's the opposite of what i normally do, but it worked very well for hemmingway. faulkner is also a good one to start with the last and close with the first.
tell ya what: when we finally rid this nation of this wretched form of 'democracy'; we'll hand the septer over to Mr. Paul...so we can return to our quiet lives (which is the ultimate goal).
janus hasn't any interest in power. janus wants this whole system razed to the fucking ground! and i will either die fighting for such an outcome; or i will die in peace and in old age surrounded by family.
I WILL NOT let my sons grow up believing the same lies i was taught. I WILL NOT let them grow up in a country that seeks to mangle their very soul.
DO OR DIE TIME IS FAST APPROACHING. WHAT DO YOU INTEND TO DO? VOTE?
death to all fascists (we've learned that prison and operation paperclips don't do much to crush your spirit -- so, you've left us with no alternative),
janus
Dr. Ron Paul is the Final Hope and Last Chance for America. There are no more sands of opportunity left in the hourglass for the American sheeple. It will be WWIII.
Ron Paul is real. Ultimately, we vote for dignity, honesty, and character. Regardless of who wins, we will suffer. Regardless of who wins, many will die.
If the NWO robot/reptile (take your pick, Obama, Hillary/Romney?Perry wins, the sufering and dying will happen on the battlefield, and then it will happen at home. All of these fuckwads have WAR glimmerig in their eyeballs.
If Ron Paul gets elected, and if he does what he says, ie, ends the Fed, returns rights to the States, weans Israel from the dollar titty, and stops the wars, the short term prognosis is economic chaos as millions of Americans, too weak and enervated from the dole, starve to death because they don't know how to work, how to solve their own problems, or how to see opportunities and take advantage of them , even if the opportunities are limited. At least we'll all get to be legally stoned, which is some consolation
But all addicts must face cold-turkey at some point. Either that or it's cop bullets while trying to hold up the Stop-N-Go.
Cold-turkey, although painful, means continued existence. Holding up the Stop-N-Go, (by that I mean a nuclear petro-war in the Middle-east, courtesy of our good friends, the Israelis) is the last desperate attempt to remain in a state of permanent, terminal denial.
The alternative to Paul is futile, disastrous war foillowed by massive starvation and the dissolution of the United States.
while i don't agree with everything ron paul says i have to admit that he seems to be honest, in fact very much so. but his son does not seem to have the integrity of his father.
give him a little time Rich-- talk again in thirty years--
Good pairing here: seriously over-fluffed novel + seriously over-fluffed politician
I still hope Ron Paul loses. I don't want the economy dying on his watch. :/
Ron Paul: Anti-Semite. Case Closed
By Jane Jamison
Texas Congressman Ron Paul is able each election to lather up a sizable group of converts and sycophants. It is never a large enough assemblage to win a national election, but just enough to split the conservative vote and cause chaos. He is once again attempting to run for president in 2012, which appeals to some independent, Tea Party and GOP-insulted conservatives.
Forget about Ron Paul. Don’t ever speak to me of Ron Paul. Do not allow this wack-job to be any kind of player in the 2012 election or before. To do so, could cause a Democrat to win. Do not insult good Patriots and supporters of Israel with twenty-somethings who want to smoke pot.
Ron Paul has some “interesting” conservative financial positions. Period. Beyond that, he is a dangerous isolationist and a virulent anti-Semite. In the current political Middle East climate, there is no room for any American politician who is not fully behind the sovereignty and support of our most treasured ally, the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel. There are no “shades of gray.” Iran is building nuclear weapons apace, Hezbollah is poised in Southern Lebanon, the Gaza is coiled cobra. There is no place for any American elected official who opposes Israel. Ron Paul has gone out of his way in recent months to align himself with those who seek to destroy Israel.
There can be no future for Ron Paul in American politics at the national level based on his radical, race-hating, strident positions.
It was shocking for many to see how many young people at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in February were there to support Ron Paul. What is a well-known “secret” in conservative circles is, that the real reason these young activists rally for Ron is his libertarian position to legalize marijuana and passivism about war and the military.
Here are numerous links to source on Ron Paul’s repeated attacks on Israel and Jews, many of them quite recent, followed by a link to my previous writings on Ron Paul’s isolationist foreign policy.
I vote for Ron Paul because, BECAUSE he is anti-Israel. Zionists are the worst anti-Semites in the world. They fed (however many, one is too many) Jews to Hitler's ovens, just to get their shtetl in the Middle East. There isn't a Jew-hater like a Zionist, anywhere.
WW3 will be started by Israel, out of pique because the world will not let a few fanatical Zionists have their way.
Show me a Republican reptile that is diferent than a Democratic reptile.
If one's vote doesn't count, then one owes it to oneself to vote one's conscience.
Actually, you vote for Ron Paul because you're an immature, gullible, maleducated, brainwashed idiot, just like everybody else who supports him.
Smart business owners and some of the best fund managers and investors are pro ron paul. Get a clue...
Its assholes like you that get disinterested gentiles (who don't have an axe to grind in the first place) into the fuck jews I'm tired of hearing the bullshit catagory. You should shut your piehole and just be content with profits.
Referencing my earlier post, i voted for GHWB ('88) because I was an immature, gullable, maleducated, brainwashed idiot.
Having since adopted an autodidactical (look it up) approach to education (it involves a lot of looking-things-up), and after reading much forbidden material, and after closely observing the usual shenanigans, I vote for Ron Paul.
I would never call you an immature, gullable, maleducated, brainwashed idiot. So, with all due respect, what are the other choices?
Let us peruse them...
Barry Soetoro: Hardly Israel's friend, but admittedly controllable. War-monger with three wars and counting. Liar. Promise-breaker. Appears to have no strength of character, poor leader. Very little accounting acumen, as he spends money he doesn't have. Not a constitutional deconstructionst, just a constitutional destructionist.
Michelle Bachmann: God speaks to her directly. Ex-cathedra-based policy decisions have a bad track-record.
Mitt Romney: Status-quo poster-child. If you like wars, deficits, Fed-based economic rainbow chasing and counterfeiting, and Zionist/AIPAC pole-smoking tomfoolery, Mitt's you man.
Jon Huntsman: This guy likes Chinese. Besides being the 2012 model of the Mitt-mobile, Huntsman is the very essence...what do I want to say? Take the Book of Mormon and baste it in a tasty broth of Bilderberger/TLC realpolitik courtesy of Chef Kissenger. Bake it in a Morton-Thiokol Military-Industrial grade oven with maximum radioactivity until bombs fly out in every direction except towards Israel.
Saving the best for last... Rick Perry: Why WOULDN'T we want a psycho for president? Just like a mad dog, wandering aimlessly in the brutal Texas heat, there's no telling who Rick Perry will bite next. He might start a war with Luxembourg, or spit in the face of the Chinese premier at a state dinner. In the shit-crazy Texan department, Perry makes Bush-junior seem, even on the days when he was all strung out on cocaine and Lord Calvert, like a paragon of sanity and moral rectitude. Since there is an even chance Perry could suddenly turn on Israel, or discover that God has commanded him to destroy the Amalekite nations surroundimg her with great fire, the only thing he has going for him is his very unpredicability.
To sum up, and not to disparage your intelligence in any way, but, WTF???
In your case, the autodidact has a fool for a teacher. And one who can't spell 'gullible' even when previously given an example of the proper spelling by the one to whom he responds.
Whah? A sentence fragment?
If you can't finish a sentence, then clearly all of your ideas must be tripe, and you must be personally incapable of holding any worthwhile opinions.
Ad hominem = weak logic
Bullshit arguments piss me off.
Bullshit arguments piss you off? More than when your brother hogs the Playstation? More than when your sister spends forever in the bathroom? More than when your pot dealer won't answer his phone? More than having to get up early on Saturday to mow the lawn because your dad made it a condition of living under his roof while you muddle through community college in your mid-twenties?
I suggest you learn the difference between conversational English and what is expected of you in a remedial English class. Have a great day!
fuck you nigger
Ron Paul IS NOT anti-Israel. Allowing Israel to make her own choices and keep her sovereignty is pro-Israel. We give her enemies more foreign aid combined then Israel herself. I am tired of reading the anti-Jew/Zionist remarks. Also, if you haven't noticed WWW3 has been started by the banks.
hey--"explotation begins at home" Feringi rules of acquisition.
Well we can see who's and anti gentile can't we-- Just cause some don't want to suck up to jews all the time doesn't make them ant-semite --you are a fucking idiot and a baiter--
http://lewrockwell.com/block/block183.html
Is Ron Paul an Antisemite? No
by Walter Block
Recently by Walter Block: The VP Sweepstakes, Part II
Gay people, it is said, have a radar system (gaydar) which enables them to discern anti homosexual bigotry, even when it is not in your face; when it is not apparent to all. African-Americans rely on blackdar, which, similarly, presumably allows members of this community to ferret out racism no matter where it appears, no matter well hidden. Some of them even see this malady within their own race, and characterize such people as "Oreo cookies."
In like manner many of us chosen people are supposed to be able to peer deeply into the souls of the goyim to determine if and to what degree anti-Semitism lurks. I don’t like to brag, but (in all such sentences, the reader is advised to ignore everything that appears before the word "but") my jewdar abilities are second to none. I’ll pit them against any other Jew no matter how finely tuned are his abilities in this regard.
I have known Ron Paul for some four decades ever since the 1970s, when he and I would attend many of the same conferences on gold and free enterprise. I have had dinner with him on more than one occasion. I have spoken to Ron on a one to one basis numerous times. We have, and had, many friends in common (e.g., Murray Rothbard, Lew Rockwell, among others), and I have had many chances to see Congressman Paul interact within this smaller circle of people. I can say, then, with absolute confidence, based on these experiences and my own finely honed jewdar that Dr. Paul does not have a single solitary anti-Semitic bone in his entire body.
Block, along with Robert Nozick, is one of the leading libertarian defenders of voluntary slave contracts, arguing that a slave contract is "a bona fide contract where consideration crosses hands; when it is abrogated, theft occurs". He critiques other libertarians who oppose voluntary slavery as being inconsistent with their shared principles. Block seeks to make "a tiny adjustment" which "strengthens libertarianism by making it more internally consistent." He argues that his position shows "that contract, predicated on private property [can] reach to the furthest realms of human interaction, even to voluntary slave contracts."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Block
What Block is a defender of is contracts. As long as the contract is voluntary, a person should have the freedom to choose. Beats the heck out of our present system where we get to vote for the people that enslave us with debt. Instead of reading wikipedia, why don't you try one of his books? Or do you just prefer the CIA's arguments if they fit your own?
Wikipedia? Really?
What could an opinion based on 40 years of personal knowledge of a man have substantiating it that your google toolbar search would lack?
Don't try to bullshit the easily-bullshitted on this board with your own bullshit "information", HL. And may I refresh your memory on the concept of "autodidacticism":
I've now read three of your posts, and I'm of the opinion that your opinions are trash. Read More, Post Less.
If that makes Ron Paul an anti-semite, then count me in.
Sorry if I don't defend the holocaust Israel is perpetrating against the Palestinians or one that spies on it's allies (Pollack) or attempts to manipulate and determine American policy through their lobbyists and veiled threats.
Personally, I am at the point where I would consider removing Israel from he middle east for the benefit of the wider global population. We could give them Florida...
Zionism stole the face of judaism and turned it into nationalism. There are plenty of jews who oppose Israel but their voices are squashed and ridiculed.
Jewish girl tries to criticise Dr. Norman Finkelstein
"Filthy" student gets owned by Finkelstein
Rabbi Weiss Rips the Ideology of ZionismSchanken - sorry, you need to go deeper.
When you realize that tribalism, crips/Bloods, sunni/shia, black/white. muslim/jew is the way the coporate masters control you, you will be able to breathe again.
Are you aware that at the Bilderburg group meetings, the muslim brotherhood and anti-defamation league (read:israel) are represented?
It's World Wrestling Federation.
You and others who will support the oligarchs that screw you daily so your "tribe" is supported are as corrupt as your owners.
By the way, I was born Jewish, my grandfather having escaped conscrption from the Soviet army in 1917.
He told me to never give in to power, better to die as he risked.
With all due respect - G
Life's a bitch and then you die, Bitchez.
http://uploads1.wikipaintings.org/images/rene-magritte/the-man-of-the-se...
charlie stole the handle...
Ron is in such good shape we can easily count on him to serve the people for 8 more years.
It's quite simple. It might be too late already. Without Ron being elected we are going to get a trip to Mad Max land.
We're going to need a bigger boat! Am I in the right book?
someone posted about USD/CAD making huge moves This was what was posted on Sept 14 and this is third time a trend has been caught in the last 25 days
http://capital3x.com/?p=1285
Ron Paul exudes more leadership in that photograph of him sitting alone, humbly waiting, than any mainstream candidate ever did in a posed, hand-selected, open-mouth from below portrait promulgated by the two-party machine.
A much harder struggle is that of maintaining sanity whilst being a useless cog in the giant corporate machine. There are no supporters and no real gauges of success or failure; there are not even any serious detractors to spur one on through anger. There is no great, white whale for corporate dwellers, no nemesis, no noble struggles. There is only the endless, hellish, time-wasting, ignoble toil in obscurity. Fortunately, death eventually comes to the rescue and at last there are no reminders of your wasted existence.
Let me get this straight.
Ron Paul is the Old Man of the Sea, living a noble life with little chance of reward.
And in a world of hyenas and jackals, Ron Paul is a solitary lion.
So Ron Paul is a Sea Lion.
A good metaphor is a jewel, compressed from the lamp-black of ordinary prose, don't you think?
A good piece, but sadly it puts the importance of struggle above being effective. In a failed system working within it will always lead to failure, that leaves three paths outside the system, the positive, the negative and the neutral. The positive path is to build an alternative or to educate a mass large enough that will build an alternative, that opens you to attack from the current system so at best you will be marginalised, at worst eliminated. The negative path is to actively attack the system and become someone like OBL. The neutral position is to know that the system will eventually fail under the weight of its own contradictions and to prepare for that day, which is both the safest root as you do not create enemies and one that does not rely on the whims of others, something that seems to be a common theme here at ZH, from buying PMs to being able to live 'off the grid', it seems that John Galt really is alive and just waiting for the fall to come in and rebuild something far better.
Ron Paul is perhaps the only sincere voice for the U.S. Constitution and heart of America in Washington D.C. and certainly he is the only true American Patriot there. God Bless the U.S. Constitution and Ron Paul; and God Damn what corrupt America and Washington D.C. has become.
We can RON PAUL it to death, bottom line HE WILL NEVER BE elected, ever, and that's that.
The game as we all know is RIGGED.
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, make violent revolution inevitable." -JFK
“Seek out and join a lawful Militia or form one in your area. If you wish to remain Free you will have to fight for it...because the traitors will give us no choice in the matter” -William Cooper
Meet me here with $:
http://www.intrade.com/v4/markets/contract/?contractId=669534
"I think they would have hit it off."
Can't picture it. Ernest Hemingway liked to kill things, big things...including himself.
He can't win? [but he already did!!]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlpODYhnPEo
http://thefinalphaseforum.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=44
Ron Paul the only shining light in DC.
Ron is a Communist when it comes to American foreign policy.
Withdraw America from everywhere was their marching song.
I should know. I was a Communist in my youth.
http://powerandcontrol.blogspot.com/2008/01/ron-paul-is-communist.html
No -- the Communists were isolationist, because Moscow was paying them to be.
Ron Paul is an isolationist because -- this is a republic, not an empire.
That does not come anywhere near adding up to "Ron Paul Is A Communist".
This is a well written piece from Jim Quinn. Writing of this quality is rare.
..
Great article from Quinn. Truth will always prevail, may get a bloodied nose and blackened eyes, but it will always prevail.
Rubber meets the road time. Find your local MeetUp groups for Campaign for Libery and Ron Paul supporters and GET INVOLVED LOCALLY. It's important to not only pick up the torch but make local contacts with the 5% who are awake and fighting for Liberty.
Let's make each of our lives a story of the 'The Old Man and the Sea'. Excelsior! Sua Ponte!
Ron Paul, in an exasperated tone during the Iowa debates, said: “All these trade sanctions!…This is why we still don’t have a trade relationship with Cuba.”
Ground Control to candidate Paul: according to figures from the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. has transacted almost $4 billion in trade with Cuba over the past decade. Up until two years ago the U.S. served as Stalinist Cuba’s biggest food supplier and fifth biggest import partner. We’ve fallen a few notches recently, but we’re still in the top half. Furthermore, the U.S. has been Castro-controlled Cuba’s biggest donor of humanitarian aid, including medicine and medical supplies, for decades.
Ground Control to candidate Paul: For over a decade, the so-called U.S. embargo has merely stipulated that Castro’s Stalinist regime pay cash up front through a third–party bank for all U.S. agricultural products; no Ex-Im (U.S. taxpayer) financing of such sales. (You’d really, really think a libertarian would approve of this.) Enacted by the Bush team in 2001, this cash-up-front policy has kept the U.S. taxpayer among the few in the world not screwed and tattooed by Fidel Castro. Here are a few other items candidate Paul might keep in mind before any campaign stops (especially in Florida):
Per-capita-wise, Cuba qualifies as the world’s biggest debtor nation with a foreign debt of close to $50 billion, a credit–rating nudging Somalia’s, and an uninterrupted record of defaults. Standard & Poor’s refuses even to rate Cuba, viewing the economic figures released by the regime apparatchiks as utterly bogus.
Ron Paul in an exasperated tone during the Iowa debates also said: “It’s about time we start talking to Cuba!”
Ground Control to candidate Paul: In fact “we” (the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency) started engaging with Fidel Castro before he was even in “office.” To wit:
“Me and my staff were all Fidelistas” (Robert Reynolds, the CIA’s “Caribbean Desk’s specialist on the Cuban Revolution” from 1957-1960).
“Everyone in the CIA and everyone at State was pro-Castro, except [Republican] ambassador Earl Smith” (CIA operative in Santiago Cuba, Robert Weicha).
Their advice was taken, and January 7, 1959 thus marks a milestone in U.S. diplomatic history. Never before had “we” (the U.S. State Department) extended diplomatic recognition to a Latin American government as quickly as we bestowed this benediction on Fidel Castro’s that day.
Nothing so frantically fast had been bestowed upon “U.S.-backed” Fulgencio Batista seven years earlier. Batista had in fact been punished by a U.S. arms embargo and heavy diplomatic pressure to resign for a year. Batista was subsequently denied exile in the U.S. and not even allowed to set foot in the country that “backed” him.
In fact, during Castro’s first 16 months in power, “we” (the U.S. State Department) made over 10 back-channel diplomatic attempts to ascertain the cause of Castro’s tantrums and further “engage” him. Argentine President Arturo Frondizi was the conduit for many of these and recounts their utter futility in his memoirs.
The result of all of this Cuban engagement? Here’s a brief list.
Result: In July 1960, Castro’s KGB-trained security forces stormed into 5,911 U.S.-owned businesses in Cuba and stole them all at Soviet gunpoint – $2 billion were heisted from outraged U.S. businessmen and stockholders. Not that all Americans surrendered their legal and hard-earned property peacefully. Among some who resisted were Bobby Fuller, whose family farm would contribute to a Soviet-style Kolkhoze, and Howard Anderson, whose profitable Jeep dealership was coveted by Castro’s henchmen. Both U.S. citizens were murdered by Castro and Che’s firing squads.
In July 1961, JFK’s special counsel, Richard Goodwin, met with Che Guevara in Uruguay and reported back to Kennedy: “Che says that Cuba wants an understanding with the U.S., the Cubans have no intention of making an alliance with the Soviets. So we should make it clear to Castro that we want to help Cuba.” (How Che managed a straight face during this conversation requires an article of its own.)
Result: Soviet nuclear missiles locked and loaded in Cuba a year later–and pointed at Goodwin and Kennedy’s very homes.
In 1975, President Gerald Ford?, under Henry Kissinger’s influence, allowed foreign branches and subsidiaries of U.S. companies to trade freely with Cuba and persuaded the Organization of American States to lift its sanctions.
Result: Castro started his African invasion and tried to assassinate Ford. You read right. On March 19, The Los Angeles Times ran the headline “Cuban Link to Death Plot Probed.” Both Republican candidates of the day, President Ford and Ronald Reagan, were to be taken out during the Republican National Convention. The Emiliano Zapata Unit, a Bay area radical group linked to the Weather Underground, would make the hits.
In 1978, President Jimmy Carter, in a good-will gesture, lifted U.S. travel sanctions against Cuba and was poised to open full diplomatic relations with Castro.
Result: More thousands of Cuban troops spreading Soviet terror (and poisonous gas) in Africa, more internal repression, and hundreds of psychopaths, killers and perverts infiltrated onto the boats on the Mariel boatlift.
In 1982, President Ronald Reagan sent Alexander Haig to meet personally in Mexico City with Cuba’s “Vice President” Carlos Raphael Rodriguez to feel him out. Then he sent diplomatic wiz Gen. Vernon Walters to Havana for a meeting with the maximum leader himself.
Result: Cubans practically took over Grenada, El Salvador and Nicaragua. (But unlike the aforementioned Democrats, Reagan responded to Castro’s response–and with pretty salutary results.)
President Clinton tried playing nice again in the ’90s.
Result: Three U.S. citizens and one resident who flew humanitarian flights over the Florida Straits (Brothers to the Rescue) were murdered in cold blood by Castro’s MIGs. Castro agent Ana Belen Montes moled her way to head of the Defense Intelligence Agency’s Cuba division, resulting in the deepest and most damaging penetration of the U.S. Defense Department by an enemy agent in modern history.
President Obama is now playing nicest of all. In executive order after executive order, Obama abolished President Bush’s travel and remittance restrictions to Castro’s terrorist-sponsoring fiefdom and opened the pipeline to a point where the cash-flow from the U.S. to Cuba today is estimated at $4 billion a year. While a proud Soviet satrapy Cuba received $3-5 billion annually from the Soviets. Some “embargo.”
Result: U.S. citizen Alan Gross has just been sentenced to 15 years in Castro’s dungeons for the crime of distributing computer equipment in Cuba.
http://frontpagemag.com/2011/08/12/a-history-lesson-for-ron-paul/
Communist Goals (1963)
Congressional Record--Appendix, pp. A34-A35
January 10, 1963
Current Communist Goals
EXTENSION OF REMARKS OF HON. A. S. HERLONG, JR. OF FLORIDA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Thursday, January 10, 1963
Mr. HERLONG. Mr. Speaker, Mrs. Patricia Nordman of De Land, Fla., is an ardent and articulate opponent of communism, and until recently published the De Land Courier, which she dedicated to the purpose of alerting the public to the dangers of communism in America.
At Mrs. Nordman's request, I include in the RECORD, under unanimous consent, the following "Current Communist Goals," which she identifies as an excerpt from "The Naked Communist," by Cleon Skousen:
[From "The Naked Communist," by Cleon Skousen]
CURRENT COMMUNIST GOALS
1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.
2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.
3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.
4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.
5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.
6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.
7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.
8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.
9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.
10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.
11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)
12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.
13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.
14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.
15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.
16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.
17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.
18. Gain control of all student newspapers.
19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.
20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions.
21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.
22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."
23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."
24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.
25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.
26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."
27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a "religious crutch."
28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."
29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.
30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."
31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.
32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.
33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.
34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.
36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.
37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.
38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].
39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.
40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.
41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.
42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use ["]united force["] to solve economic, political or social problems.
43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.
44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.
45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction [over domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike.
http://www.uhuh.com/nwo/communism/comgoals.htm
http://thefinalphaseforum.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=44
I am in my fifties. All of my life I have watched one war after another play out in the MEast. I watched Israel win one after another attack from the enemies surrounding it.
I can understand Ron Paul's theory on our involvement. IF NATO and the UN wasn't constantly interfering, Israel is quite capable of defending itself successfully. The nuclear threat from Iran would soon be squelched by the Israelis if NATO and the UN minded it's business. The MEast has been a hotbed of violence since biblical times and will remain that way until the end.
It is possible to support Israel without warring the rest of civilization. Get rid of the UN and NATO and you will see a lot of the terrorists have no backing. We are supporting both sides, with everyone pointing fingers in our direction as the problem. This seems to be bad foreign policy and of no help to Israel in the end. Globalization is destroying not only America, but the world. It is time to be introspective and save what's left of America before we can no longer help the weak, because we have allowed our strength to be sapped away, one bad law and one bad trade agreement at a time. Then, where will Israel be when their truest ally is turned to dust and ashes?
"I cannot defeat the Klingon. I can only kill him."
Word.
"...this struggle will end in defeat, he endures."
Wrong. Just as you quoted Hemmingway, Dr. Paul will end in death--not defeat. While Liberty may progress on a less certain path, or take an unexpected form, its progress is inevitable and without question.
Beautiful piece. Thanks and go Ron Paul!
Simulus and "pump-priming" have never, and will never work. An analogy is the airplane pilot as he heads for the mountain side and realizes he cannot pull up in time. What does he do? He does not turn around. Instead he reaches for his watch and turns back the dial giving him more time. Question, is he safe?
I don't give a flying shit what any of you stupid motherfuckers say (those who didn't read the entire article word for word, have never seen "The Old Man and the Sea" movie, and have never even read Ernest Hemmingway in the 8th grade) - that was the most beautiful article I have ever read. Thank you for that. Absolutely brilliant.