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Texas Rep. and former Presidential candidate Ron Paul will announce tomorrow that he is launching a third bid for the White House.
The outspoken Congressman ran for the Presidency as a Libertarian in 1988 and as Republican in 2008 where he gained an almost cult-like following as the only Republican candidate to advocate the ending of the war in Iraq and ending the Federal Reserve. His book The Revolution: A Manifesto also reached No. 1 on The New York Times best-seller list in 2008. His next literary work End The Fed entered the NYT Best Sellers List at #6 in 2009.
Rep. Paul has also held many on-line “moneybombs” that have raised very large amounts of money in one day fundraising events. Paul’s Libertarian leaning views have made him a favorite Republican amongst younger voters, a voting block that the GOP has traditionally struggled to capture. Considered a long shot by many the Texas Congressman has seen his views on the debt from years past become the battle cry for the GOP and TEA Party members in the last year which should help his chances of mounting a serious campaign in 2012.
Despite his views that most see as outside the mainstream views of the GOP voter, his fellow candidates cannot deny the power of his word in the tough economic times that have grabbed a hold of the country. As his supporters like to say, “Ron Paul was right!”
Will the majority of American’s see it that way in 2012? Ron Paul seems to think so and his supporters cannot be happier.
When we speak of education in this country we are usually speaking of scholastic education. Public and private schools. Reading, writing and arithmetic. In those areas, as compared to other countries, we have been steadily falling down the list in regards to comparative testing.
Just to show a non-partisan tilt to this claim I have referenced a Huffington Post article from late 2010:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/07/us-falls-
in-world-education-rankings_n_793185.html
It is startling data to be sure and one that politicians and educators have debated for years. How do we ensure a better education for our children and our future?
I am going to leave that battle where it is and move on to a different type of education. An education in which societal not institutional factors are failing our children’s education.
When I was a young whipper snapper we played dodge ball in the school yard. We played baseball, basketball and football in organized leagues and the winners won trophies and medals. In High school, letters were won on the athletic fields and in the classroom based on performance and attaining certain goals. We kept score and were taught to practice good sportsmanship whether we won or lost. These simple, novel parts of my childhood have been lost on today’s society.
There is no more dodge ball in the school yard. Someone could get hurt physically or worse yet their feelings could be hurt.
We still have baseball, football and basketball leagues for youngsters but there are no winners and losers. In many cases scores are not even kept and everyone gets a medal or trophy for simply participating. The same can be said in many cases for high school letters. You participated…here is your reward.
So…are we preparing our children for the trials and tribulations of the real world by sheltering them from the experience of winners and losers?
I could simply be becoming a bitter old man as I round the corner to that magic 40 number. It is possible. Or I could be seeing, in my own children’s participation in academic and athletic competitions that there is a societal shift in the way we view winning and losing. The shift is to deny losing.
It is apparent in watching what happens in society today as compared to then that this shift to deny losing exists has had a profound impact on the way our society has come to view what they believe they are entitled to receive compared to what they have the opportunity to win if they grow their skills and work hard.
If I wanted to be a great baseball player I had to spend countless hours in the back yard throwing into a net and hitting tennis balls with a wiffle bat off my neighbors roofs and sometimes through their windows. I had to practice by playing catch with my dad or my friends. I had to go to practice in order to be able to play in a game. I had to work on skills as instructed by my coaches and run wind sprints at the end of the day. If our team had the better skilled and more prepared players, we won. If we won we were rewarded with trophies and medals. The losers…….they received nothing but a pat on the back and a ‘try again next year’. Motivation to get better so they to could get the spoils of victory.
Are we teaching our children how to deal with what happens in the real world by denying them the opportunity to win or lose based upon their own hard work and skill level? I say we are not.
Our society has rapidly become one where the have not’s consistently want to be handed what the have got’s have obtained. Are there exceptions? Certainly there are. Not all people act as if they are owed something for participating. But I see the comparison between what we have been teaching our children in regards to winning and losing and the societal thoughts of a large group of people that they are entitled the same spoils of life that others have obtained through their hard work and knowledge. They want a participation medal.
Are they lazy? Some may be, most are not…but haven’t we taught them over the last several years that the losers receive the same recognition and rewards as the winners? Haven’t we taught them that simply participating is good enough? Could this be related to our poor performance in the classroom? Has taking the difference between winning and losing out of the equation instilled a mindset that no matter how we perform we will get the rewards?
We need to find a fix to our educational system.
We need however to look at societal lessons as well as academic ones. They just may be the key to building success.
Kentucky Senator and TEA Party favorite Rand Paul could be testing the 2012 presidential waters with a trip to South Carolina.
The son of Texas Rep., 2008 GOP presidential candidate and possible 2012 candidate Ron Paul, Rand is appeared this afternoon before the College of Charelston’s “Bully Pulpit” series to talk about Libya, his possible 2012 interest and the national debt. He is scheduled to appear this evening before the Charelston Meeting, a center right, invitation only organization that invites politicians to address it’s membership strictly off the record.
Paul, like his father a Tea Party favorite, who won his Senate seat last fall, is visiting several early presidential voting states independently of his father. The only answer he will give regarding his own Presidential aspirations is, “The only decision I’ve made is I won’t run against my dad,” he said, adding that he wants to see the Tea Party influence the 2012 GOP nominee.
So how many Paul’s will there be on the ballot come 2012? Just one according to Rand. Which one however remains a mystery.
With the 2012 GOP field of presidential hopefuls lending numerous rumors and anticipation to it’s constituency the polls seem to be giving early indications that those names who have been there before have the advantage heading into the spring.
2008 candidates Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney have been neck and neck in most polls and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich along with 2008 Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin have been receiving a large helping of media attention. So with the polls showing the familiar names leading the pack, where does the TEA Party fit into all of this?
Most media outlets recognize CNBC’s Rick Santelli with launching the movement with a speech from the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on February 19, 2009 while giving a speech against the Obama administrations proposal to help homeowners with their mortgages. Keli Carender, blogger, teacher organized some of the earliest Tea Party style protests, before they were even called Tea Party protests. In February of 2009, Carender held a rally against the economic stimulus package in downtown Seattle. Ron Paul supporters credit him with launching the movement as far back as 2007 when the GOP held the keys to the White House and the federal budget deficit began to grow.
Despite who claims credit for the origins of the movement it flexed it’s muscles during the 2010 midterm elections. Some credit has to be given to the TEA Party movement for the Republicans taking the majority away from the Democrats in the House of Representatives. It was their message of controlling government spending and debt that propelled the GOP to victory.
So why is it that most polls for 2012 show the members of the ‘old guard’ as the early favorites? Sarah Palin is held in high regard by many who consider themselves TEA partiers but has shown little indication that she is making a run in 2012. Ron Paul won the CPAC straw poll for the second straight year but in national polling is far behind the leaders. Tim Pawlenty has been campaigning to and garnering new found support amongst the TEA Party faithful but has yet to make any real gains to put himself on the same level of support as the early polling favorites. MN Rep. Michelle Bachmann has been hinting at a run and is the founder of the House TEA Party Caucus but has made many highly publicized gaffes and hasn’t even been a blip on the radar if the polling is any indication.
It is apparent from the results seen in 2010 that the TEA Party movement has a certain bit of influence. They are well organized and always draw media attention to their message of government fiscal responsibility. The question is can they bring the same message and support on a national level during a run for the White House as they did on the local level bringing a GOP majority to the House? The early polling doesn’t seem to say they can. It is very early in the process however and things can change quickly in the world of politics.
I believe that 2012 will be a huge test for the TEA Party movement. If they can get a candidate amongst the leaders for the GOP nomination they should be able to cement themselves as a true influence in national politics. If they fail to break through during THE largest race in the nation, they could be relegated to a mere footnote in American political history. Their message is a good one and seems to resonate with most Americans perception of the countries economic situation. Will that roll over into support from the independents that are necessary to win the White House? Time will only tell. Early indications however show that they have inroads to make within the GOP first.
Texas Congressman Ron Paul is weighing his options for a 2012 Presidential run and has jumped in feet first with a President’s Day “Money Bomb ” campaign through his LibertyPAC. In an e-mail to supporters the Congressman and 3-time Presidential candidate stated:
February 21, 2011
Money Bomb days are wonderful! There seems to be electricity in the air and a certain excitement that makes your heart beat a little more quickly.
Each time I look at the ticker and see more generous contributions and the names of other fellow Liberty lovers, it excites me about what we might be able to do together to win the future.
I can remember where I was on the day of the biggest-ever money bomb on December 16th, 2007.
I gave a speech to a big TEA Party right here in Texas and then spent the evening with family, many of whom made two or three donations so they could see their name roll around again on the ticker.
It was a tremendous day in the fight for Liberty and thinking back on it warms my heart.
Today has the same feeling. I have checked the ticker at least a dozen times and have been thrilled to see it surging up and up.
We have had so much success, in fact, that I just approved a two-day trip to New Hampshire during March recess! I hope for even more success today so I can approve more trips and programs.
Let’s keep the momentum rolling.
If you haven’t donated today, please consider chipping in right now. A contribution of any size, perhaps $20.12, would be deeply appreciated.
Please also forward this email to your friends and post it on Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks.
Our strength lies in our numbers, and together, we can stand up to the banksters and elites and tell them we are here to fight for Liberty.
The statists and other forces of big government know we are making plans and are watching what we do today.
Let’s do something special and send a powerful message. Again, please consider a donation of any size and help spread the word.
For Liberty,
Ron Paul
P.S. In honor of George Washington’s birthday, Liberty PAC has launched a Presidents’ Day Money Bomb.
Your support is critical in guiding my 2012 decision making and guaranteeing a successful political operation so we can elect the type of President who will take our country back from the statists.
Congressman Paul set an internet fund raising record in 2007 by raising $4.2 million in one day through a similar ‘money bomb’ campaign.
With his 2nd consecutive win in the CPAC presidential straw poll, TX Rep. Ron Paul may have his ‘Revolution’ back on track and stronger than ever.
