Unfortunately if I remember it right the GOVERNMENT wouldn’t allow people and organizations into New Orleans to help those in need. I remember a Canadian team was first on the scene and the government kicked them out. We have all these government organizations and they can’t get it right.

Also, I believe he wants to eliminate many of these FEDERAL organizations. He would leave it up to the states to decide how to handle many issues.

I NOTICED PAUL IN THE LAST DEBATE.
I ALSO NOTICED A GOODBUD LIGHT ADD AFTER IT WAS OVER..
I WAS MORE INPRESSED WITH THE BUD LIGHT ADD THAN PAUL

HE REMINDS ME OF OLD ROSS PEROT’S RUNNING MATE,,
WHO WAS THE GUY WHO ASKED ” WHO AM I, AND WHAT AM I DOING HERE?? ”
I THINK HE WAS AN GENERAL IN THE SALVATION ARMY OR SOMETHING..

WELL, TO KEEP THIS SHORT, I THINK THE GOP NEEDS TO PICK SOMEONE WHO WILL ASK,, ” WHO AM I AND WHAT AM I DOING HERE?? “, OR MAYBE THE DEMOCRATS MIGHT WANT TO START DOING SOMETHING WITH THEIR MAJORITY IN CONGRESS..
SOMEONE HAD BETTER GET SOMETHING DONE OR THE GOP MIGHT PULL ANOTHER ONE OUT OF THE HAT..

What many people fail to realize Mr. Dickinson is that the Executive does not hold all of the power as the Bush administration wants us to believe. Even though Dr. Paul’s views may seem a bit extreme, I believe they are necessary to balance out the powers that be. President Paul could not create law by mandate. If we have a government full of corrupt power-hungry politicians catering to the special interests it would be nice to have at least one person in government concerned about individuals.

Beginning with reasons you like someone to ultimately lead to the key point of why you really don’t like them is an effective technique. What is hyper individualism? There is only individualism. A group is only a concept. You can’t touch a group, but you can touch an individual. You praise Dr. Paul for wanting to uphold the protection of civil liberties/ rights (rights only belong to individuals) but lampoon him for being individualistic. Are you a politician?

“And it only gets wackier as you drill down.”

“So there’s some Ron Paul substance — good, bad, and tin foil hat.”

His ideas are not wacky, they make sense, you just may have to think outside of the box a little (which I know is hard for a lot of people to do).

Watch his Google appearance on youtube, that should give you a little more insight to his ideas.

I hope no one thinks that the Department of Homeland Security, NAFTA, and the UN are positive entities for America.

If you think that the North American Union is not in it’s process to happen, then do some more research on it before you talk about it. It is in it’s begin stages as you talk about it. Look it up. Also, Dr. Paul believes in individual liberties and not government controlled people. I for one love to hear this from a candidate. And Ron Paul will have my vote come primary time even if I am a democrat.

Here is my snarky comment. FEMA did a great job responding quickly to Katrina didn’t they?

Great spin from the “defined Left” at Rolling Stone.

I love how you point out Hurricane Katrina as a mess, then laugh at the idea of getting rid of DHS, the giant bureaucracy that is charge of FEMA.

There is nothing wacky about the NAU. The US Army was called up as well as the Royal Mounties in Canada to prevent a MEETING from happening when Bush was up there planning it with Canadian officials.

If you agree to the first part of the platform then this is just a manifestation of one of the many violations that come under ‘constitutional’.

The NAU is clearly UNconstitutional.

I’d much rather be allowed to use my money to donate to the Red Cross than to have the government grab it to finance FEMA. Hurricane Katrina is the perfect example of how none-profit organizations work multitudes better than the government hacks who care more about their careers than anyone of us.

If FEMA wasnt an overburdened, unorganized bureacracy then maybe it would have worked out. If the state had paid a private company (instead of sending their money to FEMA to decide how to spend it) then that company would have been responsible. Any he has said his priorites are ending wars and tyranny, not kicking the defenseless to the curb. he is 72 years old he would have to be 80 before any of the issues dear to liberals were confronted. I am a liberal who can see past his shortcomings (from a lib perspective) and realize WWIII & a tyrannical police state will happen shortly if we don’t act!

Katrina=hyper individualism??? More like hyper government interference! Nobody was on their own down their, just in the hands of a lowsy government beuarocracy.

Great article but you need to put the tin foil hat back on.

You are buying into a load of B**l S**t and right into the hands of the Powers That Be.

Hurricane Katrina is a perfect example of why big government & entitlement programs have ruined this country and made the most vulnerable in our society even more so.

People no longer know how to take care of themselves and the notion of Collective & Individual Charity has gone out the window.

Some of the greatest Universities & Hospitals in this country were found upon the idea of public service & charity.
Bill Gates and St. Jude’s Hospital are wonderful examples of this principle.

Think about it:

Whatever in the world did we as a Nation do before the Dept. of Ed., Energy, Homeland Insecurity,NAFTA, CAFTA,the 16th Amendment,NATO, WTO ……..and on & on?

As a small farmer trying to hang on to a 6 generation family farm in Pennsylvania – I think we did a whole lot better.

I cook on a wood cook stove & heat my home with wood & coal.

I promise you the regulations from the Dept. of Energy are moronic and serve the interests of Big Oil. Forget the fact that Wood is a renewable resource.

The repercussions of NAFTA,CAFTA & the WTO has made the food in the US positively dangerous.
There’s an entire generation of kids grown up afraid to eat raw cookie dough or drink raw milk thanks to the US Department of Agriculture – the USDA & the FDA are Big Businesses favorite whores.

The Dept. of Education is an oxymoron.
Small wonder people home school their children. My grandmother was better educated than what is coming out of public schools today.

And the dept. of Homeland Insecurity …..what a disaster! Better forget about HLS & go back to the store and pick up some duct tape. You are going to be on your own. Next disaster that comes our way, you had better be prepare to fend for yourself.

Ron Paul makes more sense than ANYBODY out there running for President.
He has my vote.

Who collected the people under the levee that politicians knew wouldn’t withstand more than a Level 3 hurricane? Not Ron Paul.

The collectivist mind of the “Welfare state” does not protect individuals, it throws people into groups, and is inherently racist.

Believe me, I used to firmly believe that if you had an issue against welfare, well, you are a racist. But I see plainly that believing a family and all of its offspring will be poor, so the government must provide the shittiest land available for them to live on, is racist as it gets.

If the people of New Orleans had not been penned in by the Government, the tragedy would not have unfolded like it did.

Excuse me? Since when does Katrina = hyper individualism and personal responsibility? It was my understanding that FEMA came in and, took away people’s guns, kicked people out of their own property, huddled people into a leaky and flooding sports arena, and then sent them to live in trailer parks…more like hyper government interference. Not to mention that FEMA was supposed to prevent something like Katrina!

And the NAU? It’s right there in plain print, right in the legeslation for NAFTA! They are going to build that highway, why do you deny it? Try google.

America would be lucky to have a leader who’s beliefs were rooted in the constitution. A person whom wanted to make America strong from the inside, instead of focusing on trying to change the rest of the world.

I think DELTAWILDMAN only wants slogans and catch phrases shouted at him, nothing of real substance. Substance must be boring for DELTAWILDMAN. Anywho NAU is real and that’s why our dollar is sinking. This is so they can put forwad the Amero. Problem, Reaction, Solution. GO RON PAUL!!!!

What’s so wacky about getting rid of any of those departments mentioned? All they do is get in the way of people and groups trying to help. FEMA and Department of Homeland Security wasted how many billions in New Orleans? It would have been much cheaper to have individuals, charities and church groups do the reconstruction, like they are finally doing now. People who were depending on the government are finally giving up and doing the rebuilding themselves. It would have been done a lot quicker if people were not depending on FEMA and DHS in the first place. Also remember it was federal flood insurance that encouraged people to build where no right thinking person would even consider. Because of federal flood insurance they are now rebuilding in the same flood prone areas! That’s wacky and tinfoil hat stupidity. Ron Paul would stop that kind of ill advised(to put it mildly) behavior.

Interesting that the lengthy post I just spent valuable time writing didn’t actually post.

Katrina’s aftermath represents big government…..not individualism! Fema has a bult bilion dollar budget, yet it bungled the job at every conceivable turn. The people who didn’t rely on themselves and instead turned to big governemnt were told to report to the concentration camp style prisons that only big government and beuracracies are capbale of creating! When the horrors of FEMA’s incompetancy were shown to the world the inadequacy was met with the familiar refrain that the poor performance of government was only due to a “lack of funds”, so the whole thing was thereafter treated as a PR campaign to drum up support for increased government spending. At the same time wal-mart, mormons, individual boat owners and other private organizations offered the bulk of the real help that the poor received. Yuor mischaracterization of the events showns your true ignorance on the topic of individual liberty….

Tim Dickinson, take your snarky big government, big war-loving attitudes and suck it!

I think the point is missed in Paul’s objections to various government departments. Aside from the IRS, a department created via the 16th amendment, all other departments are not created or specified in the Constitution.

Obvious to point out that at the time of creation, the Constitution would not see the need for Dept of Homeland Security (as the militia would serve that purpose), the Dept of Education, etc.

Unfortunately, the separation of Federalist and Republic (e.g.: state’s rights) has been lost on the American population. The advocating of dissolving various departments is NOT necessarily an argument against the function they presumably provide, or are supposed to. The argument is against the central and federal “one-size-fits-all” approach to problem domains.

Historically speaking, the rights of the individual were very centric to the foundation of both the Republic and Democratic aspects of America. The individual is always the underpinning of any group, collective, or common-wealth.

It is a fallacy to argue that not supporting federal departments is equitable to arguing that their function need not exist – simply put, the functions are necessary, but not at the federal level of singularity. Let the states, communities, and collectives determine the appropriate and meaningful manner in which these functions should be tailored and applied.

Don’t, though, make ill-conceived and superficially logical conclusions that base their chain of reasoning on simple, yet effective, red herring, straw man and ad hominem tactics.

In the end, please actually read the constitution (Article X and Article V), the real text of the amendments, and the full Declaration of Independence. Perhaps follow it up with some Federalist papers research. Then come make your point.

Until then, yes, the Paul group, myself included, will point out the erroneous reasoning, improper generalizations, and irresponsible regurgitations of historical and political ignorance consistently shown by, unfortunately, the vast majority of Americans.

“Katrina=hyper individualism??? More like hyper government interference! Nobody was on their own down their, just in the hands of a lowsy government beuarocracy.”

To add to “Matt”’s comment re Katrina, I remember the attrocious incident where troopers and sharpshooters were posted at the exits of Louisiana to PREVENT people from leaving the flooded area (if this meant having to walk through rich peoples’ areas)

The choice isn’t between a government that helps you and one that “makes” you fend for yourself, Tim. It’s between one that allows you to fend for yourself, versus one that explicitly (on pain of death, occasionally) and actively PREVENTS you from fending for yourself, especially if such fending may in any way oppose established interests.

Wake up and smell the coffee. I suspect Ron Paul will do rather better than most expect him to.

“Katrina=hyper individualism??? More like hyper government interference! Nobody was on their own down their, just in the hands of a lowsy government beuarocracy.”

Ya, if I recall correctly, Wal-Mart was moving more aid down there then the government. The only people FEMA has helped are the fraudsters rakin’ in the loot from it. The American people are quite generous and good hearted and more than capable of taking care of the ‘poor’ and ‘downtrodden’ then our criminal government.

If your only criticism of Dr. Paul is his small-government, personal responsibility stance on the true role of government, then I must say that your points can be refuted with just a bit of history….

Your first criticism is in regards to hurricane Katrina (which is a good question to begin with in regards to the “personal responsibility” aspect of his message). You state that “New Orleans is where the sink-or-swim doctrine of hyper individualism and personal responsibility allowed many of our most vulnerable to sink — all too literally — beneath the storm surge”, but what you must remember is that was with government assistance and bureaucracies… Katrina was not a representation of the “hyper individualism” you have tried to illustrate. Katrina was the result of the heavy hand of government involvement and interference in every aspect of that incident.

Now let us look at another hurricane (one much more severe) as a true representation of no federal government involvement. In 1900, Galveston was struck by a hurricane that holds the record as the United States most deadly natural disaster. It was much worse that Katrina, but this “hyper individualism” as you have called rebuilt Galveston- built a seawall (which still stands today)- rebuilt the infrastructure and economy of the town. The government is not needed as a aid despiser, and as we have see through the handling of Katrina by the federal government, they are actually counter-productive to the actual solution…

This thinking carries over to all the unnecessary government programs… The department of homeland security- you must be joking… That’s a new department created by the Bush administration and it hasn’t even been set up yet. Its not doing what it is supposed to do and even if it was its not necessary for the defense of America. The other departments create monopolies through subsidies… has anyone noticed the price of milk lately. It has skyrocketed and you know why… because the government placed subsidies on corn for ethanol… and then when corn is needed for something else the growers can price higher because the already have another buyer paying at top dollar (the U.S government)… the WTO and NAFTA and even more regulation to businesses… bad for the economy…

The NAFTA superhighway may not seem like much but it might be a step in the wrong direction… think about it…

I don’t think this writer should be covering political topics if he can’t address a political viewpoint intelligently. Mr Dickinson’s service to his readers in analyzing Congressman Paul’s platform of closing the Dept. Of Education is that it is ‘wacky’. Gee, thanks Tim. We’re all so enlightened.

Then he opines it is even ‘wackier’ to believe that the NAU will have a new unelected bureaucracy and money system. I guess the author has never heard of the Euro or the European Union, or the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America. The latter is the worst example of Corporate/Government intermingling that threatens us today.

Lastly, those of us who believe in personal liberty guaranteed to the people in the Constitution feel New Orleans was the best example of the government not able to do things effectively and hurting the rescue efforts. It was shown on TV where FEMA was stopping people on boats from going into the city to perform rescue missions. They also took everybody’s guns away. Katrina was Big Government at its most transparent. All Big Spending and No Action.

Maybe you should write about music Mr. Dickinson. You’re embarrasing your grade school teachers.

Another guy that wasn’t in New Orleans has an opinion about it. Figures. FEMA failed.

If anything Katrina demonstrated that the federal government CANNOT handle things as well as the private sector. Seriously, wasn’t that obvious from FEMA’s response?

“zomg paul wantz to pwn teh department of edzucaton”

Yea, because things like no child left behind have been such a resounding success-right?

What about our University system that is the envy of the world – it must be because of all those federal Universities . . . oh wait, their all private or state run.

hmmmmmmmm . . . .

Katrina was caused by hyper-dependency on government.

People depended on gov’t to save them, which they were fools to do.

A little self-reliance would have gone a long way.

just another welfare-state MSMer who would have the govt fit him w/ a diaper and wetnap.

Warning!!! Warning!!!

All 263 Ron Paul supporters in the US will now come here and spam this comment section telling us how Ron Paul will save the day. If Rolling Stone can check IP address I bet you will find many people posting multiple times using fake names.

This is getting ridiculous and you are only alienating those who might actually be interested in Ron Paul.

The writer states Ron Paul is not tough guy.

Do tough guys go out looking for fights and instigating fights?

Even beating up on people over falsified reports? I think you mixing up Tough Guy and Bully which seems to relate to me that you respect bullies and not true tough guys?

I have always felt the true tough guy was the one who was quiet and protected himself and his family, those he loves.

Ron Paul is promoting an America that protects its own firstly and strives to be an example to others.

Tough guys aren’t bullies, they are those who we admire and respect.

Of all candidates, the man most deserving of respect is Ron Paul.

His words and his actions show him to be one of integrity.

The rest, with the exception of a few who are deemed 2nd or even 3rd tier candidates, they have readily sold their integrity for political, media related and social favors.

The public simply has to understand that this election, for first time in some time (well since the JFK administration), the election isn’t Rockefeller vs Rockefeller.

In 2008 it is Paul vs Rockefeller.

I think it takes a pretty tough guy to stand up to the almighty puppet-master himself.

Who of the other top tier dare go against this man and the power elite? None as they all bow to them and are essentially a part of them. These puppet-politicians are not representative of the majority of Americans (who I might add are honest and hard working, although also ignorant due to mainstream medias work to dummy down the public).

At present all we can do is admire the integrity of a few politicians but soon the people will demand it of all.

Many of Ron Paul’s proposals that seem to scare you lefty nanny state liberals so much will not come to pass unless the people themselves get behind them and force their representatives in congress to implement them, precisely because the constitution does not grant that power to the presidency and Paul unlike Bush would not wield unconstitutional power. In this you should also realize the most important point in the 2008 elections … that is Bush has created a near complete dictatorial toolbox of powers which is going to be bestowed upon the next president. Considering the possible mischief anyone could get into with such power at their disposal… can we really trust anyone other than the pure constitutionalist Ron Paul with such a thing?

Many of Ron Paul’s proposals that seem to scare you lefty nanny state liberals so much will not come to pass unless the people themselves get behind them and force their representatives in congress to implement them, precisely because the constitution does not grant that power to the presidency and Paul unlike Bush would not wield unconstitutional power. In this you should also realize the most important point in the 2008 elections … that is Bush has created a near complete dictatorial toolbox of powers which is going to be bestowed upon the next president. Considering the possible mischief anyone could get into with such power at their disposal… can we really trust anyone other than the pure constitutionalist Ron Paul with such a thing?

The Zogby poll showed that people were not happy with the government, especially FEMA, getting involved in disaster relief.

A lot of help was provided by folks from churches all over the country, by businesses quick to supply a need, and by other individuals and groups. People were helped by their neighbors.

Today as people are trying to rebuild homes and businesses, the government is again getting in the way. One reporter suggested that this puts a ceiling on businesses in the poorest parts of town.

FEMA is just another example where a “service” is dumped on the market, discouraging those who want to help.

The author really has no idea who Ron Paul is, what his ideas are, and how he learns from history. He’s not pulling ideas out of his ass, he simply wants to follow the constitution.

I do believe the writer is one of the many in the general masses who believes the government and the mass media will always be honest with the people. When all the time the lies of the administration and the confress smack them in the face daily….ignorance is bliss I guess.

Dear Mr. Peter Brady.

it’s 274. Get your numbers right.

And BTW you’re as ignorant as the ‘author’ of this worthless excuse of journalism.

I can understand why some of Ron Paul’s Policies scare you a bit… The government has raised all of us to be very dependent upon it throughout most of our lives.

Then you have to realize that if the people had prepared for this event themselves… then response times at Katrina would have been instantaneous, and great amounts of money would not have been needlessly wasted going through government bureaucracies. The federal agencies in charge of helping with the relief effort actually got in the way of allowing volunteers to be able to get the work done in order to get New Orleans back up and running. The government completely mishandled this event, and as such $$ should not be given to these agencies, the proportion of $$ from each state that paid should be given back to the states so they can have their own more effective disaster relief funds.

I don’t know about you guys but I want to keep the federal government as small as possible and limit government spending.

RON PAUL 2008

Katrina failure = big government failure

How could you possibly blame anything on the individual.

The gov was even down there invading houses and taking guns from people who were only trying to protect their property. Rediculous.

Seems to me that Katrina was so bad because everyone thought the fed government would take care of it, and that lead to a false sense of security.

I think it goes without saying that had people known how it would be handled by the government, things would have been different. FEMA actually kept private citizens from helping, and just wasted a ton of money on their own department instead of the people.

Bottom line, to even assume that the government is the best answer and that the people in this country just don’t care and would do nothing is just absurd. And as an American, I’d just like to give you a finger to you and anyone else for thinking I’m not a good enough person to lend a helping hand and that only money can fix problems.

Katrina????

You are slamming “hyper individualism” for the katrina mess???

Which part exactly was individualism there?

The government telling everyone to go to the dome and STAY THERE?
The government turning away individuals trying to bring food and water to the area?
The government taking guns away from home owners trying to protect their property?

I seem to remember a heck of alot of PRIVATE groups, charities etc
donating food, driving there to pitch in, and generally saving the day where FEMA screwed up.

If all those americans who donated time and money for Katrina is “wacky hyper-individualsism” the by god we need MORE of it not less.

Go Paul!

Wait a minute… wasn’t it the government that made people dependent on them to help? Wasn’t it the government that stopped people from walking out of New Orleans? Wasn’t it the government that was taking guns away from people that needed them for protection? Wasn’t it the government that was turning away volunteer organizations?

Is it just me or did people call foul after Katrina but now that we have someone that’s critical of FEMA everyone is screaming in its defense…

Drop the “tin foil hat” garbage… Ron was against the war and against the Patriot Act when EVERYONE was for it. News Flash he was right. It’s obvious that he will be right about the FED and he will be right again about NAFTA, FEMA, etc…

He has a proven track record of being right when ever other clone is on the bandwagon of fear. We can do without the “big government,” we have so for 100+ years.

Uh oh, the Tin Foil Hat brigades are out in force today to protect their leader (Ron Paul).

Please be a more responsible journalist by at least researching a topic (Katrina, North American Union) before reporting on it.

Regarding Hurricane Katrina.

FEMA brought water to the city in four days.

Wal-Mart had water to the city in less than twelve hours.

Private organizations are always more efficient than the government. Always.

Tin-foil hat? I would love to hear an example of a social service that the government provides more efficiently than the private sector. Just name one. One.

You can’t do it. There aren’t any.

So who are YOU supporting Timmy?

A real Libertarian,

Ad hominem attacks are hardly in keeping with the usually intelligent arguments provided by “real Libertarians”. Try offering something of substance or value, like talking about abolishing the Department of Transportation, the police, the fire department, etc. If you’re a “real Libertarian”…

i know its easy to fall into the trap of arguing details, and plenty of people have already done so, so i’ll refrain. But i’d just like to thank the author for not simply IGNORING Dr. Paul, as most of the other main stream media outlets continue to do. I’d also like to thank him for at least attempting to explain REASONING for his positions, rather than simply accusing him and his supporters of being “nutcase, lunatic, spammers.” Go ahead and check the IP adresses. Why would we need to spam comments when there are so many others willing to post? Anyways, kudos to you. Perhaps i’ll start paying more attention to the magazine of which i had written off long ago for being too politically biased.

It definitely seems like people are posting the same things under different names. I’ve been hanging around this blog for a long time and there are never this many people commenting on an issue in such a short amount of time.

That being said, I like Ron Paul and will probably vote for him in the primaries. I don’t think that he’ll be able to win the presidency though. He’s old and some of his ideas are too far out there for the masses to swallow.

I will address issues other than Katrina–I think other members of the Paul Patrol have made your fallacy quite clear in that regard.

First.

Eliminating the Federal Department of Education does NOT mean getting run of public schools. Individual states would still have the option to maintain their own Department of Education, if they should see fit.

Eliminating the Dep. of Education simply legalizes competition. If you know anything about economics (and I am stretching myself to assume that you do), then you know that competition increases quality and decreases price. Always.

Second.

Ron Paul does not want to stop trading with foreign nations. He simply wants to eliminate restrictions and “corporate welfare” that manage such trade. Under such a (non)system, business would be able to do what is most efficient, thus producing a cheaper product.

Cheaper products help the poor–that is, cheaper products make a dollar stretch farther, so those with a small amount of money are able to purchase a greater amount of goods. The standard of living goes up.

To conclude.

What, specifically, has NAFTA ever done for you as an individual? Can you cite some example?

Um, in Hurricane Katrina, the message I got was not that the government failed to protect the most vulnerable but rather that people need to take care of themselves because government cannot.

A government big enough to give you everything you want, is big enough to take it all away.

You can’t have it both ways. Ron Paul’s message is one of self ownership and self responsibility.

Timmy, you need to think about these things some more.

Mr. Dickinson,

Before you read my post below (which I am unfortunately not able to edit), I would like to thank you for writing this article and not simply ignoring Dr. Paul’s message. I believe you are being intellectually honest and candid, and that is a rare find these days. I do disagree with you on some ideologies, but I respect your opinions and congratulate you on an excellently written article!

First Ron Paul blames America for 911, now he says theres a good chance Bush will stage a terror attack. i agree with him on the war, taxes, and drugs but he has to do better on Terrorism.

Seems like the people in the Ron Paul camp have more knowledge of government than the writer of this article. I have learned more reading the comments than I did reading the article! I will be looking into Ron Paul now

Dear Mr. Dickinson:

Thank you for the article on Dr. Paul. You have given your honest assessment of him; that is to be valued in this day and age of partisan journalism.

That said, I believe you have taken the “wrong message” from the Katrina incident. The lesson learned from that catastrophe is that the federal govt cannot protect us from all of Nature’s ways—we have to prepare for the unpredictable ourselves.

This my thought; I hope you consider it.

Ron Paul for Prez.

Ron Paul never blamed America for 9/11, he blames an atrocious foreign policy that can be validated by the CIA, 9/11 Commissions Report, and Bin Laden himself.

Maybe the thing about Ron Paul supporters who post online that makes some think that it is only a handful of people, is how consistent they are because they are actually supporting a candidate who is consistent in his stance with the constitution.

More than 1500 cajuns with high performance bass boats were turned away from rescuing folks in NO because the government had to do the job – Alot more expensive with helicoptors than boats.
The city would have been taken care off way before it got bad if government would not have been in the way.

More than 1500 cajuns with high performance bass boats were turned away from rescuing folks in NO because the government had to do the job – Alot more expensive with helicoptors than boats.
The city would have been taken care off way before it got bad if government would not have been in the way.

Katrina was a calamity now doubt but government interference only made it worse, as shown throughout these posts, not better.

“No Department of Energy, Homeland Security, Education or FEMA. No more U.N., NATO, WTO or NAFTA.” I can’t believe you think having these things are really that great. Have you even heard Ron Paul’s reasoning as to why some of these are unnecessary and how some actually hurt us, or did you just plug your ears and start screaming “lalala”? Or worse yet, did you not even research for yourself how these departments or alliances could be hurting us? There is more than just one side to a story.

And the NAU will be very real in the upcoming future, that is, unless courageous leaders like Ron Paul have nothing to say about it. It’s so sad that you’re trying to discredit him. You’re like most other Americans – ignorant. It’s even sadder that you’re perpetuating your ignorance. Please, please stop it.

To say Katrina was mishandled because of the “Paul Philosophy” is ridiculous.

Hey — What if there was no IRS, and Gulf States could use that money to build there own Hurricane Response Teams. Don’t ya think it’d be just a little more efficient than FEMA, no matter who was President?

Imagine if -gasp- States didn’t have to see there money go to Washington and get crapped out oon Bridges to nowhere but instead could send it directly to the schools were its needed.

Wow. I was a liberal, no I’m a Power -and Money- To The People type.

Lazy writing, Tim Dickerson. Sitting at your keyboard typing stream-of-consciousness may work well when giving your feeling impressions of the latest rock album.

Researching an article about a man who presents important ideas that can influence the direction of this nation and the world requires a writer who is willing to do some research.

Research: Read a book written by Ron Paul. Then go read several of the other books and articles he wrote. Watch his speeches on youtube. Listen to the radio and tv interviews. Consult with experts.

Then write your article and present it to us, your readers. The writing can only improve.

Otherwise, do another line, have another toke and another drink. Then look at the clock, realize you should have started days ago. Your deadline is in a few minutes. Write something – anything – about Ron Paul. No time for research.

Just another lazy day for another lazy writer.

Tin foil?

Did some Italian guy have a tin foil hat on the first time he heard about a Euro?

Lets Stand up for our liberty.
Lets protect our indivisual rights!
Lets bring back the constitution!
Lets get rid of the bullies!

Vote for Ron Paul 2008!

I’m sick of all these publications that trivialize my support as a “tin-hat” supporter.

I will not be purchasing Rolling Stone anymore.

You have entered the world of irresponsible journalism. I’m sure you thought you would attract some readers by throwing Dr. Paul’s name into your .com. Congratulations, that doesn’t make you a king.

Wake up america, Ron Paul is the only honest politician out there.

As one who lived through the surge of hurricane Katrina I find that explaination obsurd and whould kindly ask the author to apologize and retract it. I’m 2 states away from mississippi now and am still doing repetitive Fema PAPERWORK because they might have some help for me, 2 FN years after losing my house and everything in it. And if Louisiana had built the levees instead of the federal government they would of held. Ann

Wow! I’m really impressed by the responses to this article. Didn’t know there were so many well informed people out there. People who can think! Who would have thunk?

After reading many of Hunter S. Tompsons editorials published for your magazine throughout the years, I actually once thought you gave politics a decent look. I mean so many young music lovers read what have to say on serious issues. Your short and vague article was terrible. You should delete it soon before you loose even more respect

I would think that a magazine like “Rolling Stone” would be able to get an interview with Paul and let him answer for the “wackiness” himself.

I think the “wackier” position is that our government has shown itself to be so competent that it should be regulating education and energy, nation-building around the globe, providing for our retirement, and such ~ despite their oaths to a Constitution that prohibits all of the above.

Ron Paul represents Galveston area in Congress. You might have heard of that Galveston island was completely wiped out around the turn of the century by a hurricane. The local citizens after the hurricane rebuilt Galveston. They pumped dredge to raise the island and built a seawall to protect against future hurricanes all without FEMA.

NASCO Supercorridor. Google it. Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America. Google it. This stuff is real. Better stick to rock & roll buddy. Your credibility is shot with regards to politics.

Is this article serious? I’ve read more factual info out of the National Enquirer. Do some research before you decide to write.

Is this article serious? I’ve read more factual info out of the National Enquirer. Do some research before you decide to write.

Just cancelled my Rolling Stone subscription.

What unintelligent speculative crap.

Do some research before you write.

The money I save from your subscription I will be donating to Ron Paul’s campaign.

I, too, believe we will see another major ‘terror’ incident before Bush’s term expires. Probably near the supposed end of his term. I have said for five years now that I don’t believe he will relinquish power. A staged terror attack, a simple declaration of martial law – in the interest of ‘national security’ of course – and voila, Bush gets to remain in power. Think outside the box for a minute, those of you who still can. This administration has spent far too much time, money and effort establishing the most comprehensive power base ever organized by any president, from the executive right through the lesgislative and judicial. He thumbed his nose at us – his ‘fellow Americans’ – countless times; Rove, Gonzales, Rumsfeld, Plame, Libby, Cheney/Halliburton, Iraq lies, torture, clandestine wiretaps on innocent American citizens, congress (’I don’t have to listen to you. I’ll veto anything I don’t like!’ See here, I make the rules around these here parts. ALL the rules!) He has thumbed his nose at our one time allies and alienated many of our one time good friends. He has done more to sow hatred against Americans on a global scale than any other man or single incident ever has. This man is fast digging a grave for our beloved America and we better do something to stop him soon because he is very adept at dividing and conquering. He will not give up the power he so loves. He is addicted to it and would be lost without it now. He did not ‘win’ two elections. Both were ‘won’ under dark clouds of doubt and suspicion and dubious happenings – first in Florida, then in Ohio. His approval rating is at an all time low yet he proceeds as if he were beloved by the nation. He is responsible for 3600 + American lives and tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of Iraqi, Afghani, Palestinian and other lives. His days are numbered though because the Russian bear is reasserting itself and the Chinese are also starting to assert themselves, (as is India), and he cannot stand against such formiddable foes when our interest finally clash – and they will. Oh yes, they will. Soon.

I am cancelling my subscription to The Rolling Stone….that was uncalled for…..Ron Paul speaks only truth….no conspiracy…..you should be ashamed!!!!!

Goodbye Rolling Stone. It was nice knowing ya….

Did you watch the aftermath of Katrina? Did you pay attention? FEMA was a problem, not a solution. Were it not for FEMA and its monopolization of relief efforts, private organizations would have been far more effective at disbursing aid. It is because of the FEMA bureaucracy that we saw such a slow, ineffective response. There were literally scores of churches and other aid centers who were shut down or otherwise hindered by FEMA.

Do your homework RS. This is not only a Ron Paul conspiracy… many states are voting against the NAU and SPP. Why do you think? Use Google and you might learn a thing or two.

Can you name one thing our Federal Government does really well: Education, FEMA, Veteran’s Medical Care, protecting our liberties, intercepting 19 Muslims with box cutters and preventing from totally overwhelming the most powerful military in history of mankind? No, no, no, no and hell no!

Where we succeed, is in the killing of mostly defenseless Iraqis with our military might. That, sadly, we do very well.

So Timbo, if you’re happy with the status quo, cast your vote for any of the other knuckle draggers (Rep or Dem)and continue to be very very afraid.

If Rolling Stone can check IP address I bet you will find many people posting multiple times using fake names.

Do it! and do an article on it. (2nd post here).

Well um, FEMA was in place before Katrina, fat load of good it did those people. What exacerbated the problem was the ward of the state mentality ingrained into many of the people who stayed, expecting that Nanny Government would be along with the rescue party and hand outs to make everything all better. Guess what, the government can’t do everything for you, it can’t protect you from a storm and a civil disaster of that magnitude, especially a million people stranded in an artificial wading pool dug out next to the Gulf of Mexico. And really if you expect it to, you really belong someplace like Canada, Cuba, Europe… Go over there and get on their waiting list for any given surgery and let us know how it goes. By the way, Dr. Paul doesn’t expect everyone to simply sink or swim, he fully expects other more local organizations, both public and private to fill in the gap. He believes that local authorities can equip themselves much more appropriately and efficiently and with greater local control i.e. you’re not spending $150,000 in federal tax dollars for bomb defusing equipment in Backwater, Kansas just because they’ve been given funds that they need to use or lose. This is the kind of waste that is breaking our government.

Rights belong to individuals, not groups.

FEMA is a complete failure, as was evidenced by Katrina.

Only strong individuals make strong communities. Only communities can respond to natural disasters and prevent terrorist attacks. Federal Government is useless against both.

Ron Paul is the absolute best choice for President.

And Rolling Stone shows once again that without Hunter S. Thompson, it is pretty much worthless.

Tin Hat indeed sir, I’m sadden by your lack of respect for a man that cares deeply about this nation.

I support Ron Paul, I wish you had the brain to do so as well.

Mr. Dickinson:

Thank you for your coverage about Ron Paul. I believe that your views are honest if mis-informed.

There have been enough thoughtful comments here that I have nothing to add. I will only ask you, Mr. Dickinson, if you do take the time to read the comments to your article, will you please consider responding?

Thank you.

Jason, if they did that and it turned out that these were all from unique posters would you and the rest of the naysayers shut up about RP’s supporters being a few spammers? I guess his 2.4 mil on hand is monopoly money too eh? Please, please by all means, audit our posts.

I just called to cancel my subscription of RS. This article is disgusting.

I just saw a post on here about Ron Paul, and IP adresses – how we would all be the same person.

Your really drinking the juice huh?

I belong to the Ron Paul meetup group in DE – small state – lots of Ron Paul supporters.

Think again, maybe people with common sense like him. If you had common sense you’d realize we are all supporters posting on him and you, too, may like him.

The writer is wonderful at putting words together and avoiding comma splices.

And then …

There is the total absence of grey matter above his spinal cord. It is truly perplexing that the man is able to put pen to paper in his state. Of course, a total omission of any supporting rationale or citation from his poorly written hit piece is to be expected. In short, this guy is a hack.

See! I can do it too!

I don’t think you’ve shown you understand his positions, you could ask him for an interview?

Poor timmy’s arguments just got slaughtered, he must be crying now and sucking on government milk

- I wont be as harsh as allot of these people, but I do advise you and all to study the North American Union, it’s not as tin-hatty as it sounds and twice as scarey.

Ron Paul 2008! – it’s a long shot right now, but I believe it’s our only hope.

My heart goes out to the victims of Katrina. For those who survived the storm and aftermath there is still suffering beyond what is conceivable to me, for never have gone though a horror like that. The comments before mine, have already illustrated how our government and FEMA including BUSH failed and continues to fail these victims.
Mr. Dickinson, I hope these responses give you the inspiration to find out the truth yourself, and not to be afraid of change or a new voice. For that is exactly what our country needs.
Ron Paul 2008!

regarding your tinfoil hat comment about a north american union:

the british were brought into the europen union through various “trade agreements” but were mearly steps to eliminate british independence, which is now the case. This is what our “trade” agreements do as well. It was the model for europe and is being implimented as the model for america. this is fact not fiction.
look it up. and take off your tinfoil hat.

regarding your tinfoil hat comment about a north american union:

the british were brought into the europen union through various “trade agreements” but these agreements were mearly steps to eliminate british independence, which is now the case. This is what our “trade” agreements do as well. It was the model for europe and is being implimented as the model for america. this is fact not fiction.
look it up. and take off your tinfoil hat.

Oh the little liberals and their endless faith in huge government. Enjoy the police state! Ron Paul is the smartest and most honest candidate in our lifetime. You libs simply don’t know your own history. All your democratic pupits are for the destruction of individual liberties in favor of a global order, the same new order that Bush I proclaimed in 1989. Billary, Kerry, Bush I, Bush II…all the same thing people. If Kerry’d been elected we still by Iraq. They all on the same team. Ron Paul is the one candidate who is truly committed to YOUR individual rights! Try to wake up in spite of Rolling Stone’s super hip line of B.S…Thanks!

Oh the little liberals and their endless faith in huge government. Enjoy the police state! Ron Paul is the smartest and most honest candidate in our lifetime. You libs simply don’t know your own history. All your democratic pupits are for the destruction of individual liberties in favor of a global order, the same new order that Bush I proclaimed in 1989. Billary, Kerry, Bush I, Bush II…all the same thing people. If Kerry’d been elected we still by Iraq. They all on the same team. Ron Paul is the one candidate who is truly committed to YOUR individual rights! Try to wake up in spite of Rolling Stone’s super hip line of B.S…Thanks!

Tim, you should try and do a little more research before speaking. As one of my 7th grade teachers used to say “An empty barrel makes more noise than a full one.”

And in response to “Jason,” who speculates that these posts are all from a group of folks spamming under different names over and over, please do an IP check and post the results.

I’ve never subscribed to RS, and if this is an example of the “journalism” the perodical has been reduced to, it is a certainty that I never will. RS can keep on rolling downhill as far as I’m concerned.

Tim,

Thanks for the article on Ron Paul. As you can see, people are very excited about his message. Does a man who speaks the truth stand a chance in D.C.? We’ll see!

BTW, I just want to add my voice to the chorus. If you think that FEMA and the WTO and NAFTA and NAU are good things, then maybe you should do a little research.

This author thinks Ron is great on the war and civil liberties, which he is, but the auhor does not understand all aspects of the failure of government in New Orleans. Who built the levees that failed? Why it was the Army Corps of Engineers. And were decisions about the height and strength of the levees a market based decision or a political decision? It always amazes me that when government fails the answer is always to give them more money which is the opposite of what happens in a market. Talk about perverse incentives!!!!

I’m glad to see RS writing about Ron Paul. May I suggest that you do an interview of him? It’s easy to call his views “wacky” when you don’t hear him explain them. Just watch his recent interview at Google HQ if you want a true education on the meaning of “liberty”.

This is why Rolling Stone magazine sucks. If you are going to speak politics please educate yourself before wasting our time with articles like this one. Stick to what you know…Music…wait judging by who makes your covers (corporate made pop groups, boy bands,britney spears, ashley simpson etc..)Seems you dont even know music anymore. Too bad you dont have Hunter antmore.

Ron Paul fighting for the Constitution is equivalent of Dr. Martin Luther King fighting for equal rights. Ron Paul is a true Patriot. You Tim Dick-head sound like an FOX News sound byte.

Did you do any research on this article before you stood up for the Fascist Fictional Reserve Bankers?

What a joke. I will never subscribe to Rolling Stone. You and it are a P.O.S.

Galveston Texas was completely rebuilt after it was destroyed by a hurricane in the early 1900s. The sea wall is still in place. This was done without FEMA. I was thinking of canceling my RS subscription, and this article just pushed me to do actually do it.

RON PAUL 2008!!!

I’d like to see RS publish an actual , balanced article about Ron Paul.

Hit pieces do not count.

Some call Ron Paul wacky and out there, so he doesn’t have a chance. There are a lot of previously apathetic voters that are “wacky” too b/c they believe that the Constitution really did work (before it was ignored). They want to try this individual liberty thing again – let’s at least give it one more go. We can’t deny that as a country, we are going down the path of statism and getting closer to its end every year. (If you can think of a political “-ism” it’s just a specific form of statism). Do you know what’s at the end of the statism path? Every time, without fail? Mass graves, imprisonment without defense, horrendous inequality and poverty. We see this – and we want off this path, so we support Ron Paul and his message.

Please stop insulting my intelligence by saying I have a tin-foil hat on. You are lying because we both know it’s an Aluminum-foil hat, thank you very much!

The Katrina failure is a symptom of failed liberal bog government ideology, not conservative, small government philosophy. See “Corpus Christi.”

Unless you’re prepared to watch UN-led Chinese forces march on American soil when some future President decides to boot out inspectors, then withdrawing from the UN is the only logical choice to make.

The SPP is absolutely real, and it is absolutely illegal. “Consent of the governed….” and all that.

Our forefathers fought and died so we could be a sovreign nation. It’s a shame to see so many people willing to hand decisions that shape our world, and our children’s world, to outside forces that absolutely do not have American interests in their hearts or minds.

Alfie, i meant the Government not the people. AAron, thanks that was interesting. i like Ron Paul i thought the recent comment he made about a Government manufactured terror attack were irreasponsable.

Ron Paul is for cutting and decentralizing the federal government back to its constitutional limits. That means the feds shouldn’t be doing it, but the states, localities, and the people should. The concept of the level of government doing the job where it is most effective had been lost in a tide of incompetent power-grabbing in DC, and Rep. Paul wants to reverse that tide and return the power and the responsbility to the places where they belong, at the state and local level, and foremmost to the People. That’s why I support Rep. Paul, no tinfoil hat–he wants us to succeed by taking charge and rising to the occasion and not relying on DC for everything. Works for me…

Ron Paul’s policy ideas may seem whacky because we have gotten so far away from the constitution.

Thanks for the coverage.
My only gripe: you have to research Ron Paul’s ideas and arguments a little more, and I mean real research not half-assed MSM journalism, before you call them “tin foil hat”. Other than that, you can disagree with him as much as you want. Fortunately, an increasing number of Americans are doing just the opposite.

Your comment about Hurricane Katrina reminded me a something that David Boaz of the Cato Inst. wrote that squares with Ron Paul’s
philosophy; “”You’ve got to hand it to the advocates of big government. They’re never embarrassed by the failures of government. On the contrary, the state’s every malfunction is declared a reason to give government more money and more power. Take Hurricane Katrina, a colossal failure of government at every level–federal, state, and local.

“Let’s look at the facts. Government failed to plan. Government spent $50 billion a year on homeland security without, apparently, preparing itself to deal with a widely predicted natural disaster. Government was sluggish in responding to the disaster. Government kept individuals, businesses, and charities from responding as quickly as they wanted. And at the deepest level, government so destroyed wealth and self-reliance in the people of New Orleans that they were unable to fend for themselves in a crisis. And some people conclude that we have too little government?”

So the Amero dollar and North American Union are not real??

Google: “North American Union”
Google: “Amero Dollar”

Also search these terms on YouTube, facinating stuff!

If Ron Paul is not elected, there will be a one north american union.

Katrina proves that individualism doesn’t work and we need more big government collectivism? That’s easily the most perversely stupid thing I’ve read this month.

I won’t support publications that engage in “yellow journalism.” Therefore, like others here, I have just cancelled my subscription to Rolling Stone. My money is best spent supporting candidates such as Ron Paul. The “tin foil” hat stuff is for real. There is a planned NAFTA superhighway. There is a North American Union being formed through treaties and outside of congressional oversight. The Gulf of Tonkin did happen in the past so a “self-inflicted” wound in the US as a pre-text for a pre-emptive attack on Iran is very possible. Please do your research and report with facts. Even Lou Dobbs on CNN reports about the NAU, and the NAFTA Superhighway. I don’t see any tin foiil hat on him. Also, check out my IP address, I’m just the same person who spammed these comments hundreds of time because Ron Paul only has only a few tech savvy supporters and we spam.

Tim,

Please learn more about Ron Paul by visiting YouTube and do a search on Ron Paul.

Also please read your Constitution and read a few history books about why we fought the American Revolution and the balance of power between States and Fed Govt. The principles are just a valid today as they were back then.

Thanks

You want substance? Have you read Ron Paul’s books? Have you even watched a long interview?

God, I miss Hunter S. Thompson.

The only reason Ron Paul can be labeled as “tin foil” hat is because of the corporate service Rolling Stone and other major publications provide.

This service is also why you practically hear nothing about how bad the Fed is screwing up the economy, or how truly bad, treasonous even, Bush’s executive orders and maladministration are.

So when the author wishes to tell truth, he should do so with teeth, unapologetically and without reservation.

Otherwise, he still clearly wants a matter for even attempting a veiled apology to the establishment via some tinfoil hat insinuation. And he deserves a master. May his shackles fit comfortably, and may the tasks set before him be to his liking.

The only reason Ron Paul can be labeled as “tin foil” hat is because of the corporate service Rolling Stone and other major publications provide.

This service is also why you practically hear nothing about how bad the Fed is screwing up the economy, or how truly bad, treasonous even, Bush’s executive orders and maladministration are.

So when the author wishes to tell truth, he should do so with teeth, unapologetically and without reservation.

Otherwise, he still clearly wants a master for even attempting a veiled apology to the establishment via some tinfoil hat insinuation. And he deserves a master. May his shackles fit comfortably, and may the tasks set before him be to his liking.

p.s. I cancelled my subscription to RS a long time ago for just this sort of silliness.

p.p.s. Ron Paul 2008!

Just trying to kill the italics.

And, this was a sad excuse for an article. It is clear that this person did not do even the most basic homework.

I just cancelled my subscription to RS because of Tim dick. If I wanted views like yours I would watch FoxNews.

And Yes I’m voting for Ron Paul.

To comment on Ron Paul’s radical deregulation: you have to realize that deregulation isn’t the end of the line. Many of the groups he would dissolve are assigned specific tasks by our congress but fail because of a lack of oversite or responsibility. Take FEMA for example; it clearly failed after Katrina. But if our government contracted privately owned businesses to carry out the disaster management work it could control the business’s profit incentives by requiring levels of proficiency that cannot be controlled if a bureaucracy like FEMA is left in power. Those who don’t trust business have no need to be concerned with this because the business’s profits would rely on satisfactory completion of governmnet contracts (getting trailers to katrina, setting up temporary housing, etc).

Apparently, you aren’t paying attention. *FEMA*, the agency you claim we need are the ones who turned volunteers away (with the barrel of a gun), destroyed food sent by other countries to help them, and did very little actual rescuing.

I won’t even go on. If you really believe what you say, “May your chains rest lightly on you, and may history forget you were our countrymen.”

You clearly have NOT done any research into Dr. Paul’s issues and you don’t know what is really going on…you would rather hear glossed over UTOPIA for all.Get a reality check. I hope they fire you for such incompetence. But, have a great day…really.

Please research information and stop giving in to corporate tool bags version of what we should hear/read/see. Ron Paul has many great ideas for fixing this country yet people are quick to critisize. Where is the criticism for the current leaders and parties who are doing a hell of a lot worse?

To state that Ron Paul and his supporters are the “tin foil hat brigade” is also to state that the founders of the United States and the framers of its constitution are of the same ilk.

Marx would agree.

Thank you RS. I read one comment that a person had read the other comments and started resarching Ron Paul!

That’s great! We need people to look into him and understand what is truly happening in America.

So, even though you have sold-out, your article of deceit has done a wonderful job.

If only each and every article like yours can get just one person to learn about Ron Paul and where our country is headed, then I welcome your un-researched comments with open arms.

Thanks again.

As previous posters have remarked, the paragraph linking the horrible aftermath of Hurricane Katrina with the individualistic philosophy of Dr. Paul and other libertarians contains horribly flawed reasoning.

Truthfully, it was Washington that those the author refers to as “our most vulnerable” were depending upon for assistance. It was Washington that was unable to effectively coordinate the delivery of supplies and aid to victims. It was Washington that obstinately refused to allow victims to receive the benefits of an overwhelmingly sympathetic international response. It was OUR federal government who asked the National Guard to patrol the streets of New Orleans and restricted Second Amendment rights as if the citizens of Louisiana’s cherished city were indistinguishable from those of Iraq’s war stricken capital.

Dr. Paul has discussed this issue on numerous occasions, as the city of Galveston in his own district was devastated by an even greater natural disaster in 1900. However, Galveston’s residents banded together to rebuild their city in an era prior to rapid transport or efficient communication – something the national government of the world’s sole superpower miserably failed to do more than three decades after placing a man on the moon.

Don’t underestimate the incredible power of the individual. That is the quintessential value upon which this nation was founded, and it is the central force behind the inspirational campaign and message of Dr. Ron Paul.

“If you set up a government headed by people who believe government can do no good, pretty soon you get your wish. The failures in Katrina and elsewhere give you two divergent roads. A: fix the institutions of government. B: dismantle them. ”
Tim – If you believe, much like Thomas Jefferson, that the scope and size of the Federal government should be restricted in favor of states’ and individual rights, then we ABSOLUTELY should be debating whether or not Federal programs are even entitled to exist, regardless of how you feel about the decision making power-brokers at the reigns of the institutions. And, let’s be perfectly honest here, although the Katrina / FEMA disaster occurred on the hands of a Republican administration, big government interventionist programs such as Social Security, welfare, the Dept. of Education, Medicare / Medicaid (co-managed by states and Fed), and FEMA have been doomed from conception, not due to changing partisanship of the leaders manning the helms of the Executive or Legislative branches, but because these interventionist entitlement programs are fundamentally flawed. Although the goals of these programs are worthy of aspiration, the underlying notion that the centralized bureaucracy is efficient and motivated enough to manage pan-state programs of this nature is both theoretically and practically flawed, as witnessed by the pending bankruptcy and ineptness of all the institutions being discussed. This fundamental flaw does not change by re-arranging the figure-heads that manage the institutions or manipulating some of the practical implementations of the programs: only reforming the way we conceive of our Federal government and seeking out novel and more efficient solutions to solving the problems we face will offer a viable long term solution. Too many of our politicians on both sides of the political spectrum only want to deal in platitudes, arguing in vague non-specifics over how to tweak Federal programs to optimize their life expectancy… only Congressman Ron Paul – much like Jefferson challenging the notion of a Central Bank – asks the tough question regarding whether or not these government programs should even exist in the first place. * By the way, thank you for engaging in this discussion and responding with some comments and feedback. True debate in this country on these types of issues is sorely lacking!

Dear Mr. Dickinson,

Thank you for your article on Ron Paul. There is nothing in the world that REQUIRES you to support Ron Paul. In fact, as I’m confident you probably already realize: there is NO ONE – certainly no candidate for president – who is likely to defend your right to criticize Ron Paul’s position on anything …than Ron Paul himself.
So, if some of my fellow Ron Paul supporters seem to have forgotten all of this in their response, well …please don’t hold it against all of us. Most of all, please don’t hold it against Mr. Paul.
What I would ask you to consider in greater depth is your own appreciation of the fact that Dr. Paul has “a coherent worldview and he’s sticking to it.”
Dr. Paul IS a constitutionalist. One thing I think he KNOWS (…though even he seems to have forgotten the details of it lately…) is that the Constitution CAN (effectively) be amended by a TREATY.
Regardless: Treaties DO become the “law of the land” no less than the Constitution itself …in compliance WITH the Constitution itself.
You can pooh-pooh the notion of the “North American Union” if you wish. I’m certainly not going to claim to be any expert on the subject. But I would ask you to look into this more deeply before you seek to lampoon Mr. Paul any further on this point.
Perhaps he is “crying wolf” on this point. But he doesn’t have a history of doing so. In fact: when one considers his initial assessment of the War in Iraq …we would have to concede that – when Ron Paul cries wolf …he probably sees something the rest of us don’t.
In fact: given that our Congress and our president are far less interested in abiding by our own constitution and actually DECLARING WAR than going to war on the basis of U.N. resolutions …which we recognize only by virtue of treaties …perhaps it would be worth payin more attention to all of the things our government is accomplishing by a resort to TREATIES: things that our government knows that we the people – or perhaps even 2/3trds of our so-called representatives – very doubtfully 3/4ths of our state legislatures – would EVER agree to if the Constitutional provisions for properly AMENDING THE CONSTITUTION were actually followed.
Whether or not it matters to you personally, it would probably be of interest to many of your readers that – if the Constitution were abided by – there really should be no laws prohibiting the growth, sale or use of marijuana.
Remember prohibition. Go back and check the amendments to the Constitution. Wehn prohibition was enacted, we had enough honest legislators that – when they found that the Constitution did NOT authorize the prohibition of alchohol – they actually bothered to PASS AN AMENDMENT (2/3RDS OF BOTH HOUSES AND 3/4THS OF ALL THE STATE LEGISLATORS APPROVING)…for that purpose. That was CONSTITUTIONAL.
When prohibition proved to be the really BAD idea that it was (however “constitutionally” it may have been introduced) …Congress still had the dignity to pass ANOTHER amendment to REPEAL PROHIBITION.
Where is the Constitutional authority to prohibit the growth, sale or use of marijuana? Interstate Commerce? GEE why did those guys pass amendments regarding the prohibition (and subsequent REPEAL) of alchohol then? Where is the Constitutional Amendment authorizing the (clearly effective) “prohibition” of marijuana?
Could it be less clear that the Corporatocracy we presently live under have no interest in controlling the flood of illegal aliens (from Mexico, particularly) into the U.S.? Why then are you so skeptical of Ron Paul when he speaks of the “North American Union.”
Doubt the threat of this if you wish. But, on the basis of his records and his clear principles: don’t you think you owe it to Ron Paul to investigate the possible threat he sees in this “North American Union” before you ridicule him any more?

Thank You!,

James Hines
Fairhope, Alabama

Dear Mr. Dickinson,

Thank you for your article on Ron Paul. There is nothing in the world that REQUIRES you to support Ron Paul. In fact, as I’m confident you probably already realize: there is NO ONE – certainly no candidate for president – who is likely to defend your right to criticize Ron Paul’s position on anything …than Ron Paul himself.
So, if some of my fellow Ron Paul supporters seem to have forgotten all of this in their response, well …please don’t hold it against all of us. Most of all, please don’t hold it against Mr. Paul.
What I would ask you to consider in greater depth is your own appreciation of the fact that Dr. Paul has “a coherent worldview and he’s sticking to it.”
Dr. Paul IS a constitutionalist. One thing I think he KNOWS (…though even he seems to have forgotten the details of it lately…) is that the Constitution CAN (effectively) be amended by a TREATY.
Regardless: Treaties DO become the “law of the land” no less than the Constitution itself …in compliance WITH the Constitution itself.
You can pooh-pooh the notion of the “North American Union” if you wish. I’m certainly not going to claim to be any expert on the subject. But I would ask you to look into this more deeply before you seek to lampoon Mr. Paul any further on this point.
Perhaps he is “crying wolf” on this point. But he doesn’t have a history of doing so. In fact: when one considers his initial assessment of the War in Iraq …we would have to concede that – when Ron Paul cries wolf …he probably sees something the rest of us don’t.
In fact: given that our Congress and our president are far less interested in abiding by our own constitution and actually DECLARING WAR than going to war on the basis of U.N. resolutions …which we recognize only by virtue of treaties …perhaps it would be worth payin more attention to all of the things our government is accomplishing by a resort to TREATIES: things that our government knows that we the people – or perhaps even 2/3trds of our so-called representatives – very doubtfully 3/4ths of our state legislatures – would EVER agree to if the Constitutional provisions for properly AMENDING THE CONSTITUTION were actually followed.
Whether or not it matters to you personally, it would probably be of interest to many of your readers that – if the Constitution were abided by – there really should be no laws prohibiting the growth, sale or use of marijuana.
Remember prohibition. Go back and check the amendments to the Constitution. Wehn prohibition was enacted, we had enough honest legislators that – when they found that the Constitution did NOT authorize the prohibition of alchohol – they actually bothered to PASS AN AMENDMENT (2/3RDS OF BOTH HOUSES AND 3/4THS OF ALL THE STATE LEGISLATORS APPROVING)…for that purpose. That was CONSTITUTIONAL.
When prohibition proved to be the really BAD idea that it was (however “constitutionally” it may have been introduced) …Congress still had the dignity to pass ANOTHER amendment to REPEAL PROHIBITION.
Where is the Constitutional authority to prohibit the growth, sale or use of marijuana? Interstate Commerce? GEE why did those guys pass amendments regarding the prohibition (and subsequent REPEAL) of alchohol then? Where is the Constitutional Amendment authorizing the (clearly effective) “prohibition” of marijuana?
Could it be less clear that the Corporatocracy we presently live under have no interest in controlling the flood of illegal aliens (from Mexico, particularly) into the U.S.? Why then are you so skeptical of Ron Paul when he speaks of the “North American Union.”
Doubt the threat of this if you wish. But, on the basis of his records and his clear principles: don’t you think you owe it to Ron Paul to investigate the possible threat he sees in this “North American Union” before you ridicule him any more?

Thank You!,

James Hines
Fairhope, Alabama

Mr. Dickinson,

Dr. Paul’s ideology does not imply that he, as president, would have executive power to undo all of the institutions he dislikes, but rather inform the public on the truth of how they ruin our country.

If you share the same ideology and support arguments in favor or Dr. Paul’s disgust of end results of such instutitions’ mishaps (Katrina), then why the name-calling?

Are you just trying to get attention because you know that Ron Paul supporters are intelligent and informed and widespread on the internet?

Dr. Paul is very correct about his stance on FEMA and Hurricane Katrina. If Rolling Stone would’ve done it’s homework before trying to smear Dr. Paul, they would’ve read all about how his own district of Galveston rebuilt from the worst Hurricane disaster our country had ever seen WITHOUT the help of the federal government.

Rolling Stone, sucking up to the big boys. You should be ashamed…

I cannot believe the author of this article would take issue with Ron Paul for opposing Homeland Security, FEMA, and the WTO.

Rolling Stone continues to expose itself as a mainstream hack rag.

Thank you Rollingstone, covering Ron Paul- You see he seems crazy at first but it just raw genuis and thats why so many people are excited about him!!!

Check him out some more he is a visionary!

He could fix the economey in his first term!

RON PAUL CAN SAVE US ALL!!!!!

The Government built the levees that failed! The city wouldn’t have even been built on the lowlands it now exists on if it wasn’t for the government building those levees in the early part of the 20th century. The government failed to help the people during Katrina. It has nothing to do with Ron Paul and his ideology!

Gotta love Ron Paul supporters.
VOTE RON PAUL in 2008.

I’m disappointed in your lack of journalistic investigation.Your lack of knowledge regarding Ron Paul’s policies truly makes this article a laugh.

Example #581,234 in why we just don’t need the MSM anymore than we do FEMA.

Who is Tim Dickinson, and why is he writing about politics? How uninformed do you have to be to blame Katrina on “small government policies” instead of realizing that Katrina is Exhibit A in why government does everything worse than the private sector?

Sheesh. Read before you blog, TD.

I think rebuilding New Orleans is an utter waste of taxpayer resources. Government decision is based on patriotism and pure politics.

Private players would act in their own self-interest and determine whether it’s viable to rebuild New Orleans.

Did the US government happen to start San Francisco, Seattle, or Boston? No, private individuals did.

Dear Mr. Dickinson,

Thank you for your article on Ron Paul. There is nothing
in the world that REQUIRES you to support Ron Paul. In fact, as
I’m confident you probably already realize: there is NO ONE –
certainly no candidate for president – who is likely to defend
your right to criticize Ron Paul’s position on anything …than
Ron Paul himself.
So, if some of my fellow Ron Paul supporters seem to have
forgotten all of this in their response, well …please don’t
hold it against all of us. Most of all, please don’t hold it
against Mr. Paul.
What I would ask you to consider in greater depth is your
own appreciation of the fact that Dr. Paul has “a coherent
worldview and he’s sticking to it.”
Dr. Paul IS a constitutionalist. One thing I think he
KNOWS (…though even he seems to have forgotten the details of
it lately…) is that the Constitution CAN (effectively) be
amended by a TREATY.
Regardless: Treaties DO become the “law of the land” no
less than the Constitution itself …in compliance WITH the
Constitution itself.
You can pooh-pooh the notion of the “North American
Union” if you wish. I’m certainly not going to claim to be any
expert on the subject. But I would ask you to look into this
more deeply before you seek to lampoon Mr. Paul any further on
this point.
Perhaps he is “crying wolf” on this point. But he doesn’t
have a history of doing so. In fact: when one considers his
initial assessment of the War in Iraq …we would have to
concede that – when Ron Paul cries wolf …he probably sees
something the rest of us don’t.
In fact: given that our Congress and our president are
far less interested in abiding by our own constitution and
actually DECLARING WAR than going to war on the basis of U.N.
resolutions …which we recognize only by virtue of treaties …
perhaps it would be worth payin more attention to all of the
things our government is accomplishing by a resort to TREATIES:
things that our government knows that we the people – or
perhaps even 2/3trds of our so-called representatives – very
doubtfully 3/4ths of our state legislatures – would EVER agree
to if the Constitutional provisions for properly AMENDING THE
CONSTITUTION were actually followed.
Whether or not it matters to you personally, it would
probably be of interest to many of your readers that – if the
Constitution were abided by – there really should be no laws
prohibiting the growth, sale or use of marijuana.
Remember prohibition. Go back and check the amendments
to the Constitution. Wehn prohibition was enacted, we had
enough honest legislators that – when they found that the
Constitution did NOT authorize the prohibition of alchohol –
they actually bothered to PASS AN AMENDMENT (2/3RDS OF BOTH
HOUSES AND 3/4THS OF ALL THE STATE LEGISLATORS APPROVING)…for
that purpose. That was CONSTITUTIONAL.
When prohibition proved to be the really BAD idea that it
was (however “constitutionally” it may have been introduced) …
Congress still had the dignity to pass ANOTHER amendment to
REPEAL PROHIBITION.
Where is the Constitutional authority to prohibit the
growth, sale or use of marijuana? Interstate Commerce? GEE why
did those guys pass amendments regarding the prohibition (and
subsequent REPEAL) of alchohol then? Where is the
Constitutional Amendment authorizing the (clearly effective)
“prohibition” of marijuana?
Could it be less clear that the Corporatocracy we
presently live under have no interest in controlling the flood
of illegal aliens (from Mexico, particularly) into the U.S.?
Why then are you so skeptical of Ron Paul when he speaks of the
“North American Union.”
Doubt the threat of this if you wish. But, on the basis
of his records and his clear principles: don’t you think you
owe it to Ron Paul to investigate the possible threat he sees
in this “North American Union” before you ridicule him any
more?

Thank You!,

James Hines
Fairhope, Alabama

Tim D. just writes what the owners of RS tell him to write. Don’t blame him for his ignorance.

Go Ron Paul!

Mr. Dickinson:

Please consider that not everything must be done by means of Federal government – in fact, the Fed is often the worst way to get things done. Dr. Paul’s strict interpretations of constitutional limits on federal government actually give us more power and control at the local level, where FEMA/Katrina types of disasters are almost certainly less likely. In fact, Dr. Paul represents a gulf coast district in Tx, also vulnerable to hurricanes (and they’ve had a few, though not catastrophes like Katrina), and they’ve handled it well locally.

Mr. Snarky, Thank you for creating a Ron Paul, “Issues”. I have a different perspective than my fellow REVOLutionists on FEMA. Like them, I am a “FEMA foe”, however; Where I disagree with them is I think FEMA did exactly what FEMA was supposed to do, protect the interest of government, which is not the people. The actions of FEMA proved that our government is not about protecting citizens any longer, but protecting government subsidized interests. In that, FEMA was great, and the lack of appreciation by citizens goes to show that government protection of citizens is what we expect, and why so much disolution and disappointment when the truth was revealed. Welcome to the Ron Paul REVOLution, tin hats welcome. Maybe we CAN all get along?

Aside from limitations on what the federal government is supposed to do, all the federal departments don’t work. Government solutions benefit mostly those in power and special interests, not those who are the excuse for the federal department to exist.

But hey, lets just keep with the collectivist program that the author endorses, so we can finally get to the point where we collapse like the USSR and nobody will have the money to buy RS anyway. Good plan to stick with what has proven to be a failure.

Mr. Dickinson,

You’ll be eating that “tin foil hat”. The NAFTA Super Highway, and the North American Union are real as a heart attack. You might want to:

a. Consult the farmers in Texas who are having their land yanked from them through “eminent domain” for the highway.

b. Consult CNN’s Lou Dobbs and the other news people who have been reporting on the NAFTA Super Highway, and the NAU for some time now.

Just because you don’t want to believe something, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist.

I want pictures of you eating the tin foil hat.

What a ridiculous article. FEMA made the problem in New Orleans worse. It wasn’t hyper individualism. It was a bunch of people waiting on the govt. to bail them out.

Also what’s wrong with eliminating Dept. of Energy, Homeland Security, etc. They don’t make anything better. Can you name me what the Dept. Of Energy can do better than private industry? How about Dept. of Education? Do you think they can decide how to run schools more responsively than local communities where the schools are located?

The UN? Who needs them? What have they done for the US but gotten us in a bunch of military skirmishes around the globe. WTO and NAFTA only protect large corporations.

I’m afraid that the author of this piece is really quite clueless about many issues. Rolling Stone is pestering me to renew my subscription. I think after reading this article I’ll throw it in the garbage and give the money to Ron Paul.

“…Absolute truth is a very rare and dangerous commodity in the context of professional journalism,” H.S. Thompson.

Ron Paul is a man of integrity, whose words are backed by two decades of action. He is the only politician running for President who will sincerely act in the best interest of the American people. Even though I may not agree with all of his positions, I know with certainty that he is the best candidate running in the election.

Shame on Rolling Stone!

I have to agree with most of the folks who have commented before me. You’re using FEMA’s response to Hurricane Katrina as a reason to keep big government “support programs”. WTF?

And your criticism of Ron Paul’s “tin foil hat” statements about the NAFTA super highway is the kind of mainstream media name calling that I can’t stand. How do you back up your claim that that is a crazy idea? Where is your proof? Do neighboring countries never form unions? Has our federal government been way too strict on illegal immigration to allow something like this to happen? Would none of our elected leaders find it beneficial to control more states. Has America not taken an imperialistic position over the past decade?

Your editorial could have been in Fox News and I wouldn’t have known the difference.

“You’re using FEMA’s response to Hurricane Katrina as a reason to keep big government “support programs”. WTF?”

Duh…who ran the gov’t during hurricane Katrina? THAT’S RIGHT: BUSH! Duh…who appointed the guy with the horse-judging background to be head of FEMA…THAT’S RIGHT: BUSH!

The fact that the cons are using Bush’s contempt of FEMA as a reason to get rid of FEMA altogether both unmasks their below average intelligence and exposes an opportunity for the Democrats: these people are just crying out to be manipulated…

I think you should interview Ron Paul.

Congratulations to the author of this article on regurgitating “common sense” economic rationalisations for government known to most 10 year olds from their public school education.

Try stopping and THINKING for once about what happened to cause Katrina, what happened to cause the POVERTY there rather than saying “Oh, something bad happened, therefore we need more government”.

Less rhetoric and more substance, please.

Apparently you dont read your legislation, because the plans for the Super Highway are readily available on the net, and Lou Dobbs has even covered it on his show. You are an idiot that knows nothing of which they speack.

I want to thank the writer for at least giving some attention to the Ron Paul campaign. I think people who have never heard of Ron Paul before will get a clear picture from the article, combined with the arguments in the comments. So I hope this reached a lot of people.

This article is garbage. The lack of understanding is extremely frustrating. Ron Paul has the best answers to our problems and people like the author try to make Ron Paul out to be some kind of crazy person. All I have is my vote and my voice but I can guarantee you it will be for Ron Paul.

Unless you’re planning on a trip to Fantasyland with Kucinich or Gravel (who have no meaningful consituency amongst the Democratic Party elites and hence no chance of meaningful impact), or yet another protest vote for Nader, you’re left with Ron Paul. Here is why progressives should support Ron Paul:
1) Defeating the Warfare State and restoring Civil Liberties takes precedence over all else. Paul’s continued laser-like focus on these issues is essential.
2) Paul is not a progressive. Ironically, that alone should be enough for progressives to support him. If we’re serious about getting out of Iraq and restoring Habeus Corpus, then we have to move beyond our extremely limited consituency. A “United Front” strategy that includes Libertarians and Paleo-Conservatives will go much further than the usual focus on Leftist minutia.
3) Ron Paul’s analysis of the nature of power in the US is spot-on. One can disagree on particulars, but the basic premise that we’re are subject to a corrupt corporate-government accord is beyond dispute. The improbable election of a radical decentrist in the Jeffersonian tradition may be our last hope for a very, very long time.

The only thing ‘wacky’ about this article is that it made it past your editor.

“…there are times when D.C. seems such a morass of special interests and unprincipled ambition…”

There are times? Yes, and those ‘times’ are all the time. Look at the haphazard attempt at a filibuster last night; nothing gets done that the voters want done. The Republicans and Democrats are two sides of the same elitist coin.

The rich and powerful will do anything to stay rich and powerful, and their favorite weapon is government.

The Constitution and Bill of Rights was written specifically to combat this. Unfortunately the sheep in this country has let our liberties erode away.

In June of 1967, the month the Rolling Stone was launched, I was in combat training at Ft. Ord, CA. At that time the US was rapidly progressing toward having 500,000 men and women on the ground in Southeast Asia.

Forty years later, the more things are said to change, the more they remain the same. We are hopelessly locked in another disgusting war, being fought half way around the world. We are committing young men and women to an end of senseless death—as in Vietnam, for nothing. Lyndon Johnson, Gen. General William Westmorland, Robert McNamara, McGeorge Bundy and Dean Rusk were the Neocons of their day who played similar roles to those of Bush, Cheney and Rumsfield.

Vietnam represented another disgusting military action the American people were lured into fighting by way of a faked act of aggression orchestrated by our leaders but attributed to North Vietnam. As with Iraq, we were tricked into fighting an unnecessary and unwinable war. The Gulf of Tonkin was to Vietnam what WMD is to Iraq.

When it was over, we counted sixty thousand dead; hundreds of thousands wounded; and to this day many Vietnam vets live in torment from the atrocities they witnessed and from the killing in the fields they were forced to do, to survive.

The Rolling Stone hasn’t changed much either. Though they reported on the peace rallies and sit ins around the US during that year, the magazine never got to the place of taking a stand against the Vietnam war. They maintain that same wimpish presence today. Despite a corporate culture which seems to project the image of cutting edge and avant guard, the reality is, they are just as good at being corporate suck ups as Fox, NBC, CNN and ABC news companies.

While thousands of Americans have come home in body bags from Iraq, Tim Dickinson, by his ill informed hit piece on Ron Paul, seeks to share his corporate Kool-Aid with RS readers. The comments he received demonstrate they are much more in charge of the facts than is Dickinson.

In the US, the status quo is the definition of insanity. I support Ron Paul, the doctor who has the prescription for what ails our country.

One of the reasons for the slow response of the National Guard was that many of the platoons were deployed in Bush’s wars.

Ron Paul, a candidate who from the BEGINNING opposed the WAR in Iraq, wants the soldiers and Guard in US protecting our citizens…

Wacky isn’t doing away with overbloated bureacracy and ineefficient agencies.
No wacky is continuing down the same road and expecting a different result. Actually that’s insanity.
Hey Tim, please come out of the stone ages and come join us in this century.
This is the century we return to constitutional and effecient government

The above comment about keeping out the Canadians is incredibly ironic, given the news push behind the Mexican government sending a ship to New Orleans for the first time in many decades.

As has been said, government follies on both a federal and state level were responsible for the tragedies in NO. Even the local government was to blame – from the cowardice of the police officers, to the mayor’s insistencec on disarming the law abiding citizenry during a riot and looting spree. Let’s not forget the lack of available Louisiana Guardsmen who were stationed with their equipment in Iraq.

The above comment about keeping out the Canadians is incredibly ironic, given the news push behind the Mexican government sending a ship to New Orleans for the first time in many decades.

As has been said, government follies on both a federal and state level were responsible for the tragedies in NO. Even the local government was to blame – from the cowardice of the police officers, to the mayor’s insistencec on disarming the law abiding citizenry during a riot and looting spree. Let’s not forget the lack of available Louisiana Guardsmen who were stationed with their equipment in Iraq.

Excellent comments. Thanks for the lame article Dickinson. The only “fix” for government is minimizing it. Ron Paul 2008!

dr. ron paul in a tin-foil hat?
casting this type aspersion is what makes me most want to promote him.
the fact that a mindset exists in “main-stream media” that could endorse such hyper-bole ought to engage all thinking peoples.

if the truths are attacked by end around tactics like calling it crazy then we truly are in need of an examination of our positions.

rolling stones gather no moss i have heard but it seems it does gather hubris.

What a knob. Since when is wanting to abolish NAFTA (huge job killer) and Homeland security (sounds german, aka fatherland) wacky?

Do you think any of those programs you listed are necessary or justified by the constitution?

Where did you go to school? Pakistan?

If Hunter S Thompson were alive today he would be kickin’ your ass. Funny how in 30 yrs RS went from anti establishment to corporate slave rag.

I’d rather read teen beat

Wacky ??? My state senator admitted that a Mexican Embassy is to be built in Kansas City at which point the superhighway is to split. No worry about a NAU ? Why then have several states introduced legislation to urge the federal government to have nothing to do with such a thing ?

Given how the members of the mainstream media act as if they are under control of the Orbital Mind Control Laser, maybe we should be passing out more tinfoil hats

As for New Orleans:

A. The government kept out volunteers.

B. The welfare state enhanced the dysfunctional society that existed in New Orleans.

C. The government built the levees that led people to live in what should be swamp.

D. The government subsidizes living in flood-prone areas…good for the environment — NOT!

E. With a Ron Paul in the White House, the National Guard troops would have been in the U.S. after Katrina.

F. Ending the racist War on Drugs would do far more to improve racial equalization than maintaining ineffective affirmative action programs. Jail time looks really bad on the resume!

To Tim Dickenson. If you really want to learn something, read Leo Strauss’s “Persecution and the Art of Writing”. Then read it again, and again, and again until you figure it out if need be. I suggest that everyone here reads that book, it will open your eyes wider than anything you ever read before. Be mindful of the enemy.

Thanks for the story. You could have saved time by just writing Ron Paul is an idiot. The responses above tell the real story and RS has published them unwittingly. I knew you were an RP supporter, and your editor probably forced you to say what you did not anticipating the overwheling responses in favor of RP. Good job.

“RS” Ron Paul is the only one running for President that can save this country, nuff said..

First, wow some other people out there that I agree with!

Second, big fallacy in your argument Tim(well several but I don’t have the time to address everything): Being against a provider of some service is not the same as being against the service itself. More plainly, the libertarian viewpoint contends that many of the functions our government currently provides should instead be opened up for individuals to handle.

Example: Katrina. Near everything the government did could (and was) have been provided by non government organizations, and it could (and was) have been done better. How you managed to convolute Katrina into an example of why libertarian ideals is bad confounds me. It was quite the opposite.

I had to check the website to make sure I was actually at Rolling Stone and not the National Standard. Instead of just dismissing different ideas as being “tin foil hat”, why not do a little more research and find out WHY he believes these things. Because he always has sound reasoning. You may not agree with his conclusions all the time (I certainly don’t), but if there is one thing Ron Paul ISN’T, it’s nutty. He’s the most rational voice out there today. It might take more time to actually think about than blindly rallying behind slogans like “let’s fight them there before they come here”, but Ron Paul speaks the truth.

Thanks for the Ron Paul article. I expected better from Rolling Stone though. Ron Paul is the last hope for America to return to it’s roots; what made it great.

Please do some research before regurgitating the MSM’s position that Ron Paul and his followers are “tin foil” hat types.

After seeing that the outpouring of support for Ron Paul that DWARF your article, from so many American’s, I’m given hope that the future can be changed for the better.

Go Ron Paul 2008!
tony

Tim, I generally enjoy your blog and your articles and all the political articles Rolling Stone published. But your dismissal of Ron Paul shows a bit of intellectual and journalistic laziness on your part.

First of all, if the National Gaurd were actually where they were supposed to be (HERE) where Ron Paul would have them, we REALLY wouldn’t need FEMA.

Second, instead of dismissing the idea of getting reducing the bureacracy of the federal government by eliminating depts such as Energy, education, highway safety, etc.. Think about how much more beneficial it would be if these things were controlled at a more localized state level. Most state governments have already have depts. with the same responsibilities as these Federal depts anyways.

NAFTA was a step further towards globalization AKA global homogenization. Sorry, but I fail to see how this is beneficial to anyone in the long run. NAFTA has cost American’s jobs and encouraged corporations to take advantage of people from other countries willing to work for ridiculously low wages.

I actually had a conversation with my ultra-liberal sister and explained to her how programs like welfare would be better off if they were controlled at a local level. She had no trouble understanding.

We as a people need to stop asking that the federal government do EVERYTHING.

Tim, I generally enjoy your blog and your articles and all the political articles Rolling Stone published. But your dismissal of Ron Paul shows a bit of intellectual and journalistic laziness on your part.

First of all, if the National Gaurd were actually where they were supposed to be (HERE) where Ron Paul would have them, we REALLY wouldn’t need FEMA.

Second, instead of dismissing the idea of getting reducing the bureacracy of the federal government by eliminating depts such as Energy, education, highway safety, etc.. Think about how much more beneficial it would be if these things were controlled at a more localized state level. Most state governments have already have depts. with the same responsibilities as these Federal depts anyways.

NAFTA was a step further towards globalization AKA global homogenization. Sorry, but I fail to see how this is beneficial to anyone in the long run. NAFTA has cost American’s jobs and encouraged corporations to take advantage of people from other countries willing to work for ridiculously low wages.

I actually had a conversation with my ultra-liberal sister and explained to her how programs like welfare would be better off if they were controlled at a local level. She had no trouble understanding.

We as a people need to stop asking that the federal government do EVERYTHING.

Hey how is being wary of NAFTA and the idea of North American Union nutty tin foil hat lunacy? You never back that up. I first heard about the concern surrounding this issue on Lou Dobbs. So is Lou Dobbs and the CNN news staff tin foil hat wearers?

This article is a sad specimen of journalism. I think Tim would be better fit for reviewing something simple. Like cheese. Not presidential candidates.

OK I never thought I would read this kind of rubish in RS. CNN, NY Time’s & all the other Main Stream media but RS. You just lost another subscriber RS well done…

Big support from Ireland!!! End the NWO vote Ron Paul and change American’s policies forever. Abolish the UN and let the people start making their own decisions. WAKE UP AMERICA! VOTE RON PAUL!!

Rolling Stone = Irrelevant. Keep telling yourself the NAU is just a wacky idea, if it makes you sleep better, but once we’re all spending ameros you may not think quite the same.

I wonder if it’s more or less wacky than the euro and european union. Twit.

For those of you that claim that Ron Paul is so good, because he has won every onlone poll that he’s been included in. You seem to forget to that he has also lost every poll that he was not included in. How do you explain that?

Most of those depts are dysfunctional anyway, the debit cards for Katrina used in my area in Mass, after Romney flew them in, went to a local strip club on Cape Cod, and perhaps some purchased this rag as well. Anyway Romney booted them out fast!! NAU is very real, the King of Spains company Cintras working with Guilliani’s company in Texas are already signing deals for a toll highway. Its very real. Do some research before the jbird, please.

“You seem to forget to that he has also lost every poll that he was not included in. How do you explain that?”

He was not included?

Dear Tim Dickenson:

I DARE you to interview Dr. Ron Paul and publish the interview in your magazine. If you think Ron Paul wears a “tin foil hat,” I DARE you to interview him and try to prove that your comments are so smart.

If you do and your editor do not have the GUTS to agree to interview Ron Paul and publish the interview, or, alternatively, if Rolling Stone does not have the good sense to announce your termination or resignation, I guarantee I will NEVER read Rolling Stone ever again.

Tim,

I must agree with the majority of comments posted above.

Ron Paul is a very straight forward rational candidate.

Your reference of him and his wacky ideas of eliminating non-effective government agencies is very short-minded on your part.

If one closely examines and researches his so called “Way Out There” views, he/she will see Ron Paul addresses facts that are basically ignored or twisted by the mass media.

I do encourage your magazine to actually interview Ron Paul. Then present a non-censored article.

Thank You.

Is the author suggesting that a North American Union is a good idea? If so, why?

I support Ron Paul for many reasons.

His consistant anti-war stance.
His support for honest money.
Non-interventionist foreign policy.
He is a doctor – - not another Lawyer.
He talks stright – - none of the B.S. you hear from most all other politicos.
The establishment hates the good DR.

You should just interview Ron Paul and let him explain to you what he believes in rather than second guess him in your article. He has a broad spectrum of support out there by taking on the establishment and the Federal Reserve. People are truly interested in what Ron Paul has to say because he is a true patriot and lets people see through the smokescreen of typical republican and democratic politics. You know that an interview with Ron Paul is the right thing to do. So gain back a little repect from your readers and show us you have the guts to do it then.

Maybe its you wearing the tin foil hat – or are they blinders? The plan to move towards a one world government and monetary system is very real and should be very scary for every American. Is it really crazy to think that the global bankers behind the curtain would be more than willing to place U.S. sovereignty on the sacraficial altar if they felt there was a profit in it for them? Wake up America! Vote Ron Paul.

I am proud to support Dr. Paul, and I plan on donating every spare dime I have to his Presidential campaign, and if you want to save what’s left of America, I suggest everyone else do the same.

I am proud to support Dr. Paul, and I plan on donating every spare dime I have to his Presidential campaign, and if you want to save what’s left of America, I suggest everyone else do the same.

Tim Dickinson…You are a moron. And here is why. You make absurd accusation and fail miserably to provide any information to support your position. You list a whole slew of government entities and refuse to elaborate on their value to the people. This makes you an idiot. Or perhaps you are merely a fool.

As a law student who has spent many hours studying the constitution and the concept of rule of law, It is obvious to me that Ron Paul is the only candidate that actually understands how our country was designed to be run. A state empowered system allows each area to be efficient in its use of resources. It also allows the minority to have power without fear of the majority on the other side of the country determining how they should live.

Ron Paul’s government would allow each of us the opportunity to innovate and solve the problems of our communities and not teach us to rely on how washington wants to fix them (even though we know how efficient washington is).

I’ve got to say, I would absolutely love for Ron Paul to be elected. Not because he would be a good president – he wouldn’t (not now, not a hundred years ago, not ever), but because I would love to see all the people who think government does nothing right being forced to live without all the government help they’re sure they’re not receiving. I think the Paul presidency would be very instructive to those who overrate their own level of indepence and usher in a new age of standards of accountability and humility.

Hey everyone…just like uploading videos to Youtube , why not your local cable company…where I live a 30 second spot is $2! A population of 250,000! Or put SOMETHING on your back window about Ron Paul!

Lost my subscription!

Was this commentary supposed to “offer substance”? You offer no argument as to why his positions are “wacky”. Why are they wacky? Because you say so? And a bunch of other uneducated buffoons say so? You have become so indoctrinated and dependent on a nanny government, it is truly pathetic.

By the way, Dr. Paul does not promote allowing people to just DIE in a hurricane if it were avoidable. It was FEMA who screwed it up. You know FEMA, right? The one you think would be wacky to get rid of? Dr. Paul would allow the states to keep more of their own money in order to invest in their own more efficient emergency management organizations.

Get the facts before you spout, off, OK?

you seem to fail to realize that FEMA was a ROOT CAUSE of the very poor response to the emergency situation in New Orleans. The government mismanaged the entire thing, and Ron Paul sees that.

Volunteers can do better than FEMA.

Very dissapointing RS. This is a weak article that sounds like it was written with little research and from a narrow and moody point of veiw. Like many others I’m saying, let this be the prelude to the full FRONT COVER INTERVIEW OF RON PAUL – in his own words. You owe this to your readers!!

Very dissapointing RS. This is a weak article that sounds like it was written with little research and from a narrow and moody point of veiw. Like many others I’m saying, let this be the prelude to the full FRONT COVER INTERVIEW OF RON PAUL – in his own words. You owe this to your readers!!

Wow! This is all I can say. Did you write this story in the middle of a druken rage. Seriously you completely misquoted Dr. Paul’s webpage. He never once said he supported the NAFTA movement in the link you gave in your article. If this is all it takes to write article for Rolling Stone I want to be a writer. Sign me up! Let me collect a check for writing article with my eyes and mind closed!

This article was strewn with inaccuracies.

First of all:

Hurricane Katrina highlighted the failure of FEDERAL government trying to micromanage everything. FEMA should not exist. It is a lumbering unresponsive bureaucracy. The states should be responsible for their own disaster response programs.

Second:

Hurricane Katrina does NOT highlight the failure of Ron Paul’s idealogy of individual selfishness, because Ron Paul does not believe in individual selfishness. He believes in charity and community, just not government legislation and regulation. Being a libertarian does not mean being selfish, it only means believing the government’s role in public welfare should be limited. Ron Paul worked as a doctor in a church hospital for $3 an hour in the 1960’s. This is not the deeds of a man who believes in selfishness.

Libertarianism is the most compassionate idealogy as it focuses most on reducing oppressiomn, and that is why all of the founding fathers were so adament about limiting government and guaranteeing individual rights.

Seriously?

ala “Dewey defeats Truman”…. RS is about as on base as the Chicago Tribune in 1948. Weak gentlemen. Weak.

Horrible article. This guy needs to educate himself more.

Mr. Dickinson, now that you’ve been beaten to a bloody pulp by truth and facts, maybe you should consider learning a little about reality while you lay there in the corner and lick your well deserved wounds.
RON PAUL 2008

Mr. Dickinson, now that you’ve been beaten to a bloody pulp by truth and facts, maybe you should consider learning a little about reality while you lay there in the corner and lick your well deserved wounds.
RON PAUL 2008

Mr. Dickinson, now that you’ve been beaten to a bloody pulp by truth and facts, maybe you should consider learning a little about reality while you lay there in the corner and lick your well deserved wounds.
RON PAUL 2008

Did you happen to catch the all-night Senate debate? I did. Maybe you think we’re not headed toward world government, or maybe you think it’s a good thing. But the argument to stay in Iraq hinged on what was best for the Iraqi people. And I didn’t hear the Dems even offer the argument that maybe–just maybe–their concern should be limited to the interests of the nation they were elected to govern. Neither side can even call this the US anymore. It’s the ‘Homeland’. Wake up. Take off YOUR tinfoil hat; it’s blocking your brain waves. We’re there.

My first Ron Paul meetup in Vancouver, Canada is on July 25, at the Bump & Grind Cafe at 916 Commercial Drive, 7.00 p.m.

Canadians for Ron Paul. Save America, Save Canada too!

Now that my Ron Paul bonafides are out there, I want to say this about Tim Dickenson’s piece, all the Ron Paul positions are stated accurately, and theres lots of them, and thats great.

Its the editorializing thats controversial, “Katrina (debacle) is Ron Paul philosophy” and that Paul’s ideas, because they are consistent, get “wacky” when taken to their rational extension.

The factual parts were 80% of the piece. For mainstream media, giving the facts 80% of the space is pretty good. If Tim’s conclusions are flawed, indeed they are, Rolling Stone must still be commending for the important facts that take up most of the piece.

Cancelling your subscription because the writer in his editorial doesn’t understand Dr. Paul’s full platform is punishing Rolling Stone for covering political news. After all, this piece will add thousands of supporters to Ron Paul. The screed about Katrina isn’t convincing, its almost put there for “balance”, otherwise the piece would be one lovely valentine for our President Ron Paul, and well, that just wouldn’t be “balanced” , would it?

Just curious — you’re arguing that because of Katrina, we need the government via FEMA? I don’t know if you remember it, but FEMA didn’t seem to do much of anything for the people of New Orleans in desperate need. In fact, the real heroes in that crisis were local leaders, state officials/police/fire, state national guard, and Wal-Mart of all things. How would have things been different if FEMA did not exist with Katrina? I argue that New Orleans would have been more prepared and lives saved because citizens would not have been complacent “knowing” that FEMA is watching over us and will protect us. Wake up! Vote Ron Paul.

I’m not sure about Ron Paul yet. Mainly cause I just reciently heard about him. The thing that interrests me about him is I have seen new polls that include Mike Huckabee who from what I understand dropped out. Also Fred thompson, and Newt Gengrich are included, and they havn’t even announced that they’re running yet. In these same polls Ron Paul’s name seems to keep getting excluded. Also in every article that I come across about Ron Paul in the mainstream media seems to include a statement like. “He won’t win,” or “he’s not serious about running.” For these reasons I’m going to start looking into him.

Private dollars are leading the recovery in New Orleans, not FEMA. Matter of fact, the Federal gov’t is making it harder for this private money to come in. Go get an education. Read what David Walker has to say about where our nation is headed. If you don’t know who he is, you shouldn’t be talking or writing anything about policies.
Ron Paul will be the Next President fo the United States.

Private dollars are leading the recovery in New Orleans, not FEMA. Matter of fact, the Federal gov’t is making it harder for this private money to come in. Go get an education. Read what David Walker has to say about where our nation is headed. If you don’t know who he is, you shouldn’t be talking or writing anything about policies.
Ron Paul will be the Next President fo the United States.

Um, yeah. There went my subscription. I’m a Dem, and will likely vote that way in the next election but this is sloppy journalism at best. I know more about Ron Paul than the National Affairs editor at Rolling Stone? That’s just sad. Again, its not about Ron Paul per se, its about a poor poor article, an even weaker argument, and no substantiating detail. If this is the “journalism” I can expect from RS, I’ll save myself the cash and read Tiger Beat. They’re begining to do a better job reporting on the music anyway…

Hello Tim Dickinson,

You are an amazing fool. How did you ever find employment? Oh wait, I know, you work for NEOCONS.

Fortunately for you, Ron Paul will not lock you up as he believes you have the right to your opinion.

Just don’t say anything against the war in the middle east or George W Bush et al will burn your hind end.

Sincerely,
Bill Sisemore

Maybe you haven’t heard about the UN’s Charter for Global Democracy. Look it up on the Internet sometime. Your article obviously serves the best interests of the corporate international bankers who seek to control the UN.

You have just destroyed your reputation. Congratulations!

Not well researched at all.

The superhighway is not hard to learn about if you want.

Look at what some of our southern border states are doing on the state level to stop it.

Ron Paul 2008!

This is likely the first time I’ve ever completely disagreed with Tim. I think Ron Paul’s plans for the direction of the government are exactly what we need. His motives are strictly based on the Constituion. The government should not have been allowed to create FEMA, draft NAFTA or join NATO. FEMA is such a failure in terms of organization and help. They took forever to respond to Katrina’s results, and even when the response came, they gave trailers lined with formaldehyde. In addition to that, when tornados were destroying states earlier this year, they wouldn’t give fully furnished suitable trailers (though again probably tainted with formaldehyde) to those who needed homes, even though those trailers were sitting just miles away being unused. What help they were then!

I honestly think Ron Paul can bring some much needed reform to the government, and anyone who knows little to nothing about him should do some research. They’ll quickly find themselves wanting to contribute to his campaign and vote for him in the ‘08 election.

This is likely the first time I’ve ever completely disagreed with Tim. I think Ron Paul’s plans for the direction of the government are exactly what we need. His motives are strictly based on the Constitution. The government should not have been allowed to create FEMA, draft NAFTA or join NATO. FEMA is such a failure in terms of organization and help. They took forever to respond to Katrina’s results, and even when the response came, they gave trailers lined with formaldehyde. In addition to that, when tornados were destroying states earlier this year, they wouldn’t give fully furnished suitable trailers (though again probably tainted with formaldehyde) to those who needed homes, even though those trailers were sitting just miles away being unused. What help they were then!

I honestly think Ron Paul can bring some much needed reform to the government, and anyone who knows little to nothing about him should do some research. They’ll quickly find themselves wanting to contribute to his campaign and vote for him in the ‘08 election.

The three conspiring country leaders for the North American Union are Meeting at the Chateau, Montebello AUGUST 19-21, 2007
MONTEBELLO, QUEBEC
(Between Ottawa and Montreal)

The American Army and RCMP have put a 20 mile restriction on the event, including the neigbouring town of Papineau where a rally to voice opposition was squashed….

Protests are being organized against Bush, Harper, Calderon and the SPP by anti-capitalist social justice activists in Quebec and Ontario, under the framework of the People’s Global Action Network.
Tin Foil may be necessary…

Slammah,good post hope it stays peacful. Your last line cracked me up.

What you are experiencing Tim, are the rightful scoldings of some of the most intelligent people in our society. See the people you are hearing from on the internet, are the people who have the smarts and activism to not only read your crap, but respond to it to try and change the MSM. To borrow a concept from Mr. Dave Champion: we are the sheepdogs. The sheepdogs each have a varying size of flocks that we herd through the proper gates. Each and every one of the people who have responded here in defense of Dr. Ron Paul have probably from 10 to 100 sheeple that we tend to. So if you think that this movement to elect Ron Paul is just an internet fluke of spammers, then maybe you will understand that this movement is like a stealth fighter. You don’t see it coming, but then it will hit you like a 500 lb bomb. I just hope that you leave your little fox hole among the MSM before we strike.

I just dropped my fiance off at the Armstrong airport in New Orleans about 2 hours ago.. I wouldnt have called those officers cowards. The place was destroyed by Katrina and displaced families. FEMA is a joke. I live in Biloxi and there are still buildings that need to be torn down. It is rebuilding, but its slow going.

Even if I didnt agree with Ron Paul on any of his issues (I do)..

Id still vote for him because I can tell he is honest.

I just dropped my fiance off at the Armstrong airport in New Orleans about 2 hours ago.. I wouldnt have called those officers cowards. The place was destroyed by Katrina and displaced families. FEMA is a joke. I live in Biloxi and there are still buildings that need to be torn down. It is rebuilding, but its slow going.

Even if I didnt agree with Ron Paul on any of his issues (I do)..

Id still vote for him because I can tell he is honest.

I just dropped my fiance off at the Armstrong airport in New Orleans about 2 hours ago.. I wouldnt have called those officers cowards. The place was destroyed by Katrina and displaced families. FEMA is a joke. I live in Biloxi and there are still buildings that need to be torn down. It is rebuilding, but its slow going.

Even if I didnt agree with Ron Paul on any of his issues (I do)..

Id still vote for him because I can tell he is honest.

I just dropped my fiance off at the Armstrong airport in New Orleans about 2 hours ago.. I wouldnt have called those officers cowards. The place was destroyed by Katrina and displaced families. FEMA is a joke. I live in Biloxi and there are still buildings that need to be torn down. It is rebuilding, but its slow going.

Even if I didnt agree with Ron Paul on any of his issues (I do)..

Id still vote for him because I can tell he is honest.

People expect too much substance from an Entertainment Magazine like Rolling Stone.

A nicely written piece. Far better than most anti-Paul articles/rants I’ve seen. It’s nice to see someone respect the Doctor before they disagree with his philosophies.

Go Ron Paul!

Jesus, I’m a freakin ditch digger and I can see through this nonsense. It’s almost like you have to be educated to sound as ignorant as you do. Glad I cancelled my subscription when you put MC Hammer on the cover.
Ron Paul is our last hope. You’re the kind of guy that won’t even ask for a reach around from the Mitt Gooolyani types but you’ll bad mouth the last honest, moral american.Idiot. Sean Hannity feels the same as you about RP, wow! that’s great company your keeping

This was my first visit to the RS web site…..it will also be my last.
I will use my collection of RS mag`s (1973) for a source of fuel to deduce my “RAKU” pottery i.e.,(Burn It)

Tim WTF! I just want to know how much money you got paid to write this BS? Did the CFR add you to their roster? Did they threaten your family? I’m trying to understand how you (and your magazine) turned into a NWO puppets. You Asses! Our last chance for change before the 4th Reich and you piss on it. SHAME ON YOU!!!

Are there any legitimate mainstream journalists left? Or have they all been bought and paid for already by JP Morgan and Rockefeller interests? That’s a story worth covering. How ’bout it?

Are there any legitimate mainstream journalists left? Or have they all been bought and paid for already by JP Morgan and Rockefeller interests? That’s a story worth covering. How ’bout it?

ron paul 2008

how is getting rid of NAFTA wacky?? lol

you people can keep sucking on the governments nipples. but i am voting for ron paul

how is getting rid of NAFTA wacky?? lol

you people can keep sucking on the governments nipples. but i am voting for ron paul

Damn.

It was not “individualism” that messed up th Katrina response.. It was FEMA.. FEMA was turning away private relief and trucks carrying bottled water. FEMA hired private mercenaries such as Blackwater which conrfiscated peoples arms at gunpoint thus removing their ability to defend and fend for themselves.

Do you guys have a clue as to the true nature of our government and Constitution?

Amendment X

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

NWO? Fourth Reich?

I guess it’s true – there’s a nutjob for every stupidity out there.

Look, I understand you need to feel unique and special. But I’m shocked at the idiocy displayed in these comments. Cheer on Ron Paul. Pay for his campaign. And I’ll sit here and laugh and laugh and then possibly laugh some more when he become another Perot-level footnote to history.

Flame away, nutjobs. But watch out, big brother might be watching. He might be COMING TO GET YOU RIGHT NOW!!!!

My god….look at how strong we’ve become! Go Ron Paul. We’re finally coming out of the woodwork and blinking our eyes and realizing we aren’t the only ones who want to take back our country from a ravenous and tyrannical federal government filled with traitors. Ron Paul gets bigger by the hour. America is in for a surprise. Go Ron Paul.

m95cJs U cool ))

G9B1ce U cool ))

wery good, respect!

The hyper-individualism isn’t what killed those poor people in the city I call home, New Orleans. It was government negligence. Since there is a FEMA, they take responsibility for disaster relief, to the point where they actually hinder private organizations and individuals from helping, if they don’t have a contract with FEMA. And, as was made painfully obvious, they are either unwilling or incapable of doing their job.

As for the NAFTA superhighway, I find it interesting that you equate references to actual building projects and their probable future implications to hogwash, or the “tin-foil hat” talk. I also find it interesting that the Texas legislature unanimously censured the NAFTA superhighway, known as the Trans Texas Corridor.