Ron Paul Supporters Toeing the Line Between Enthusiasm and Fanaticism

As Ron Paul tosses his hat back into the presidential candidacy ring for the third time we are reintroduced to a phenomenon that followed in the wake of his first two efforts; The Ron Paul Revolution. Where most presidential candidates will have their most avid and vocal supporters, some of the followers of Ron Paul seem to huddle into a class unto themselves. While their passion is genuine and their faith is true, their compulsion to attack anyone who disagrees with them or the policies of Ron Paul is equally enthusiastic.

In January 2008, shortly after Ron Paul's second failed attempt at the presidency, Arnold Kling, of the Library of Economics and Liberty wrote a piece called "Politics and Cults." In his analysis of the apparent inability of some Ron Paul supporters to tolerate opposing opinions and the people who present them he likened their behavior to that of a cult following rather than being members of a political advocacy group. More specifically, King said, "that you are in a cult if you have a set of beliefs where your emotional defense mechanisms have shut down any receptivity to what others would consider reasonable doubt."

That Ron Paul wants to legalize prostitution at the federal level and to allow states to legalize drugs like heroin and cocaine is considered strange by many voters. That he was one of the only two senators who voted against the Securing Adolescents From Exploitation-Online Act (SAFE Act), which requires operators of Wi-Fi networks who discover the transmission of child porn and other forms of online sex predation to report it to the government is disturbing to others. Still, anyone who presents these facts or expresses concern or opposition over these matters is immediately assailed by Paul's supporters as uninformed or a liar.

That Ron Paul says he would not have voted for the Civil Rights Act , which forbids employment discrimination on the basis of sex as well as race in hiring, promoting and firing, is received as offensive to some. His position that the Americans with Disabilities Act , which prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities, should never have been passed is seen as equally odious to others. But those who report these matters are subsequently attacked and those who express disfavor of Paul's positions on these matters are immediately maligned .

The "nappy-headed hos" commentary, made by Don Imus regarding the Rutgers University women's basketball team on an April 4, 2007 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning made quite a stir. Don Imus was subsequently fired for those remarks. In response to the controversy, in an article he titled, "Government and Racism," Ron Paul expressed his opinion that the fallout over the matter "shows that the nation remains incredibly sensitive about matters of race, despite the outward progress of the last 40 years." An odd response coming from a man who said he would have voted against the legislation that promoted that progress.

Paul went on to write that, "It's also disconcerting to hear the subtle or not-so-subtle threats against free speech." Ironically, where Ron Paul defends the Freedom of Speech his supporters seem to believe the First Amendment applies only to those who agree with him.

When confronted with any negative facts such as poll numbers that show the lack of American voter support for Paul's presidential candidacy they are immediately dismissed as misinformed or outright liars . The person who dared to present the unflattering information is attacked as having their "head up their backside" and of being on "someone's payroll". When someone dares to express unfavorable opinions of Ron Paul's policies the attacks of his supporters sink to a more personal level in an almost desperate effort to shut them up and make them go away. While Ron Paul presents himself as such a champion of free speech that his supporters feel compelled to attack anyone who expresses disfavor of the Texas Senator as a presidential candidate is hypocritical at best.

Andrew Walden, Writer and Editor of the Hawaii Free Press and contributor to American Thinker wrote an article back in 2007 called "Politics and Cults" wherein he examined, among other controversies, the disturbing revelations that Ron Paul was accepting campaign donations from white supremacist groups and the response of Ron Paul supporters to those who presented unflattering facts about their candidate.

"Paul supporters complain endlessly that the "mainstream media" is censoring or ignoring their candidate." Walden wrote. "They should be careful what they ask for. If Paul wants to be taken seriously, he must stop cowering behind the internet and face these questions."

Presidential elections have always been a time of passionate debate in America and rightfully so. The eventual winner of the race will ultimately be in charge of making key decisions that will not only affect the lives of every American but of lives around the world. In the end, while not all of Ron Paul's supporters display an utter lack of tolerance for those who oppose their presidential candidate of choice, of the Ron Paul supporters who do display such a visceral animosity toward anyone who disagrees with them, I suppose Arnold Kling said it best.

"...I do not know Ron Paul. He may be wise. He may be decent. But to dismiss all doubts about his judgment and his character would be to succumb to a cult."

Sources:

Andrew Walden, "The Ron Paul Campaign and its Neo-Nazi Supporters", American Thinker

Arnold Kling, "Politics and Cults", Library of Economics and Liberty

"Teaching With Documents: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission", National Archives

"U.S. Department of Justice Americans with Disabilities Act" U.S. Department of Justice

Michael O'Brien, "Paul says he would have opposed 1964 Civil Rights Act", The Hill

Andrew Austin, "Proof Ron Paul Voted Nay to MLK Day", Freedom and Reason

Associated Press, "CBS Fires Don Imus from Radio Show", MSN Today

"Imus called women's basketball team "nappy-headed hos", Media Matters.org

Ron Paul, "Government and Racism", Lew Rockwell.com

Andy Barr, "Paul: 'ËœThe Time is Right'", Politico

Tony Lee, "Internet Study: Sarah Palin And Ron Paul Have 75% Negative Online Ratings Since Arizona Shooting", Human Events

Patricia Campion, "Time Not Right for Third Ron Paul Presidential Run", Associated Content

Hawaii Free Press