Voting often feels like begging. You only get to decide which bully will take your lunch money. The best approach may be to turn your back on the whole thing and at least deny them the respect they presume to have. You can’t keep your money, but by ignoring them, you can keep your self-esteem.
I once again put that feeling aside to support the one politician who doesn’t seem to want my lunch money: Ron Paul.
In 2007, Ron Paul supporters were fewer, younger and louder.
Perhaps the older, calmer and more numerous supporters are a sign of the main-streaming of the liberty message. In 2007, Ron Paul’s area was relegated to an obscure corner of the straw poll:
This corner wasn’t even occupied on Saturday:
If I understand correctly, the campaigns bid for spots. In 2007, Mitt “the plastic man” Romney had the central area:
This year, it was Paul:
In the surrounding area, Santorum and Ron Paul seemed to dominate signage, with the edge going to Ron Paul.
In 2007, now-forgotten Senator Brownback had an impressive presence in the front area between the event and the parking lot:
I had the feeling his campaign was in trouble though, because his goons wouldn’t let me or my girlfriend into his tent to eat some of his barbeque. First they said I needed to vote. So I voted (for Ron Paul), and returned to show them my stained thumb:
Then they didn’t let me in because they didn’t believe I was a Brownback supported. I honestly don’t know how they concluded that. I wasn’t wearing any liberty paraphernalia. Perhaps my appearance and good manners were insufficiently pro-war and pro-Patriot Act.
So we went to eat some of the plastic man’s food. Grey burgers on white bread, if I remember correctly. The free food helps me feel better implicitly endorsing these sociopaths through my participation.
This year, I ate three free snow cones from the large wind-energy tent:
Here’s how it works. (This an important lesson for anyone entering politics.) You go up to them, point to what you want and say “give me this, please.”
As a mere participant at the straw poll, you’re relegated to snow cones, burgers, a pro-wind power battery-operated fan, pens, barbeque, pepsi’s, tote bags, buttons and bumper stickers. But I imagine as you claw your way up the political ladder, all America becomes your point and take buffet, and as our wars progress, much of the rest of the world too.
Energy people had a big and scary presence.
Somewhere they found people to wear “I’m an energy voter t-shirt”:
One of the speakers, an industry consortium rep. spoke about reducing regulation and creating jobs. I suspect he speaks to Republicans about reducing regulations (except for regulations which eliminate competitions) and to Democrats about subsidizing energy alternatives.
To show your obvious enthusiasm for wind energy, you were allowed to go sign a giant wind turbine blade.
There are many such turbines in Iowa and neighboring Illinois. You can see them driving on 80. They look as still and beautiful as if they were painted onto the horizon.
Here’s what I magic markered as a show of my appreciation for this important subsidy:
I entered the main arena to listen to a few speeches:
An excellent and logical video explained that Iowa is first in the nation for several reasons:
– Iowans ask tough questions and can’t be fooled by slick ads
– Iowans volunteer their time
– Iowa is voted #1 by young professionals
– Iowa is #1 in wind energy
– Iowa is #1 in corn, soy and other crops
– Iowa is #1 in medical care . . . “without the federal government’s help,” they added.
Then I listened to Rick Santorum. (Have you ever tried Googling his name?) He had just exhaustively toured the state and wanted to make sure all Iowans got a chance to meet him and sit down “in their living rooms and libraries,” because listening to people is what’s missing from politics.
How sensible!
He talked about his “little engine that could campaign.” What an outsider!
And talked about how the media has been reluctant to give his campaign the coverage it deserves. Don’t you HATE when the media ignores a candidate! It’s obvious to me that Santorum is an honest politician who the elites don’t want you to know about.
He said the “United States is in jeopardy of losing its freedom because of one man and one bill. Obama-care.”
Instantly, I felt relief from my concern about unsustainable wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Pakistan, militarism toward Iran, TSA groping, the Patriot Act, domestic spying, fiat money, fractional reserve banking, bailouts and nationalization of major industries. phew!
Santorum also said he wanted people to look him in the eye and kick his shins like they were tires, which sounded exceedingly sensible to me.
I also listened to Tim “T-Paw” Pawlenty’s speech which was occasionally interrupted by chants of “T-Paw,” from his genuine and grassroots supporters.
When he said that Valley Forge wasn’t easy, settling the West wasn’t easy, World War II wasn’t easy, going to the moon wasn’t easy, but it’s not about easy, I felt dizzy with patriotic fervor, and might have pulled my pants down and opened my wallet right then and there if friends had not physically restrained me.
He spoke about maintaining the peace by maintaining our strength, and I tingled all over with the extacy of America’s greatness. I stumbled from the auditorium in search of a military contractor who’d accept as a donation what little remained in my wallet after purchasing my $10 bus ticket.
But after getting another free snow cone, I lost momentum and decided instead to walk around and enjoy the spectacle:
Michelle Bachmann was so important and presidential, that a whole bunch of official looking people ran behind her golf cart as she waved to confused and indifferent attendees. The flashes of many cameras with long lenses quickly had their effect, though. The confused because curious. The curious gathered, and the crowd became an attraction in itself.
This is another important lesson for the many aspiring politicians who read my blog.
This year, there was no fair tax Ferris wheel:
There also seemed to be far fewer buses than in 2007:
which may or may not have anything to do with non-participation of Mitt Romney, widely rumored to have bused in Iowans from all over the United States in 2007.
I’d heard the results would be announced at 4:30. Then I heard they’d be announced at 5, then 5:30. At almost six o’clock, they were read. I watched C-SPAN which was broadcast on televisions outside.
They announced that over 16,000 people participated, and the winner was . . . . . Michelle Bachman!
Then they showed the number of votes received by Santorum, then Cain, then Mitt Romney, then Newt, then Huntsman, then McCotter. I didn’t know how may Paul received, but it obviously wasn’t important.
Then they showed the number of voted received by Gittering, then Pawlenty, then they went down the list of important, viable candidates again: Santorum, Cain, Romney, Huntsman, McCotter . . . .
Arithmetic told me that Michelle Bachman and that Ron Paul guy must have split about 10,000 votes between them. It was only back at the bus that I discovered they had almost tied, and only after I returned to the loving embrace of my neighbor’s wifi network that I gained more perspective:
– How Michele Bachmann Bought the Ames Straw Poll
– Ron Paul got ‘shafted’ by the media: Politico’s Roger Simons
– Jon Stewart exposes media censorship of Ron Paul
From the 2008 campaign:
– Censoring Ron Paul – Why the rEVOLution will not be televised
Texas Governor Rick Perry may be the flavor of the day for a lot of Republicans, but Texas Republicans who are familiar with his record are a lot less enthusiastic about his presidential run. “Perry has a unique talent for finding new ways to raise taxes and loves to use taxpayer money to subsidize his business cronies,” says Secretary Dave Nalle of the Republican Liberty Caucus of Texas. “His supposed belief in limited government and states rights conveniently disappears whenever it conflicts with the demands of the special interests and corporate cronies who he serves.”
(