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Go Home Is This Libertarianism?

THE PLANK FEBRUARY 25, 2008

Is This Libertarianism?

BY JAMES KIRCHICK

I guess the only defense that Ron Paul supporters had in regards to his ugly newsletters was that they were published in the 1980's and 1990's. Wonder how they explain this:

--James Kirchick

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24 comments

Hey!  They used my likeness without my permission!

- bcbaird

February 25, 2008 at 3:48pm

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Where did they get that model?

- ackyri

February 25, 2008 at 3:59pm

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And the line between "Ron Paul campaign" and "bad sketch comedy" thins further.

- adaglas

February 25, 2008 at 4:00pm

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I think this photo was meant for the anti-smoking ban flyer.

- Lundell

February 25, 2008 at 4:12pm

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Looks like a frat boy at a University of Georgia football game. If only he was sporting a mullet and a visor, it would be spot on.

- mpatrickhendri

February 25, 2008 at 4:15pm

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The message here is clear: Have man breasts, don't get government subsidies.

- virginiacentrist

February 25, 2008 at 4:23pm

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I think that young man is just wearing the traditional clothing of the American southwest.  TNR suggesting this photo is divisive is nothing more than an obvious and transparent attempt to distract from the serious issues confronting our country today and to attempt to create the very divisions they claim to decry.

We will not be distracted.

Regards,

Maggie Williams & Ron Paul

- keef94

February 25, 2008 at 4:25pm

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Was this picture taken outside of a Social Security office or something?  Or do Ron Paul's supporters think that this guy just walks in there and demands money?  Surely they have a "No Shirt, No Shoes..." policy.

I don't get this.  There has got to be a more direct way to get the message across than an outright appeal to racism...

- pcombes

February 25, 2008 at 4:28pm

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Though to be fair, I would imagine that Ron Paul thinks it's time to end Social Security for everyone, not just shirtless Hispanic smokers, no?

- clifton

February 25, 2008 at 4:35pm

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I've been hard on Kirchick lately, but this is an excellent post. Short, direct, and he lets a rhetorical question say more than any 200 words of explanatory outrage from the author would ever do. Plus, it's got a picture, and on the internets pictures is good.

On the content side, is that guy wearing a Harley cap? What kind of anti-American zealot would try to deny Social Security benefits to a guy in a Harley cap? That is one assimilated dude right there. The visual to sell this attack would be more like a boot-print in the sand with a crumpled Social Security check or something. Or, if you want to use this picture, then you'd better be proposing a law that would deny Social Security to NASCAR fans.

- rhubarbs

February 25, 2008 at 4:43pm

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It's actually a photo of one of Mitt Romney's landscapers.

- davidsmith192

February 25, 2008 at 4:48pm

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I was not aware that illegal aliens are drawing social security benefits. I am aganst that too. Does that make me a bigot? The photo is not racist - just not flattering. But accurate, nevertheless.

- r-ennis

February 25, 2008 at 4:54pm

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Agreed with Rhubarbs.  I would complain less about Kirchick if his average post was more like this.

- ejbenjamin

February 25, 2008 at 4:59pm

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Is it just me or does that Señor Citizen look a little too young to pulling in SS checks already? I can now see that the direct side affects of botox and prison tattoos leads to sagging man-boobs and bad taste in trucker hats.

The only thing missing from this persuasive advert is the guy holding a can of Tecate beer in his hand.

- singlespeed

February 25, 2008 at 5:00pm

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The guy in the picture looks a lot like a pharmacologist I used to work with--he was doing his post-doc work, left shortly after I arrived. Very smart guy, and a cut-up. I can see him with the smoke and the cap--can't vouch for the tatts, though.  The kind of guy you want to work with because your project will profit nicely from his research, he works hard, and he's just a pleasant, professional guy--a good influence on everyone around him.

Oh, and he was an immigrant--Hispanic, if I recall.

- williamyard

February 25, 2008 at 5:16pm

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Jamie,

Who is receiving this mailer?  Did you call the Paul campaign for comment?

- stgla

February 25, 2008 at 5:32pm

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davidsmith, hah, great one.

New slogan Ron Paul: Hope for America, at least that part that is white.

- blackton

February 25, 2008 at 5:33pm

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"Ron Paul says - No Social Security for You!"

Ron Paul = Soup Nazi  ???

I really don't know what to say.

- ClumsyMohel

February 25, 2008 at 5:35pm

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If this guy is an American citizen, can he not seriously sue the ass off that ass? The obvious implication is that he snuck into America.

- blackton

February 25, 2008 at 5:56pm

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Brilliant, clumsy.

- CharlesFosterKane

February 25, 2008 at 6:00pm

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Just before the Michigan primary, I received an e-mail from the Paul campaign that tried to make him look like a bigger Christian conservative than Huckabee. I wish I still had the e-mail to count how many times the word "Christian" was used to describe Paul or his views.

It doesn't bother me if a candidate wants to campaign as a Christian conservative -- Huckabee is upfront about it although I don't and wouldn't support him. But I get the feeling Paul is trying to put one over on a lot of people, whether they're libertarians, social conservatives or whomever else he's trying to reach.

It made me think his campaign as a "libertarian" is dishonest despite the vibe I get from Reason mag that Paul is the greatest thing to happen to the movement ever.

- erickryan

February 25, 2008 at 7:12pm

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r-ennis, currently, no, an illegal immigrant cannot collect social security.  Because so many of them use fake social security numbers to get jobs, they do pay between $7 and $60 billion dollars a year into it, based on estimates I saw.

- anonevent

February 25, 2008 at 10:08pm

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Is Ron Paul still legitimate news? Which is more bizarre, the ad or this post?

- purcellneil

February 26, 2008 at 8:17am

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Here's a link to a summary of Paul's bill:

www.govtrack.us/.../bill.xpd

Looks like it would have prohibited any income earned while an illegal from counting toward future benefits, including disability insurance.

- epackard-02

February 26, 2008 at 9:25pm

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