What can Ron Paul supporters do to promote his candidacy without coming off as spammers?

Question

I am an ardent Ron Paul supporter who is not officially associated with his campaign. I'm passionate about his message that government ought to be limited to preserving the liberty of individuals. I believe that a Ron Paul presidency could make the world a better place for all except the current elite. For this reason, I am very vocal in advocating his candidacy.

The purpose of my question is two-fold:

1. I'm not just posting my opinions to satisfy my own ego. I want to change minds. If Ron Paul supporters are seeming as mere annoyances then we're clearly wasting our time. I would like recommendations on what you think are appropriate ways of communicating.

2. When Ron Paul supporters are being reasoned and informative (yes, there are obnoxious supporters), I want you to question whether you're rather more interested in voting for American Idol than for a presidential primary. (Over-simplification, I know.) I'm just asking people to give us a fair shake.

Thanks!

Hmm... so far I'm seeing two main types of answers: 1) Ron Paul supporters giving generally thoughtful answers and 2) people who don't like him and want to tell me why.

I knew that the people in category 1) would be sympathetic. To the people in category 2), I appreciate your views, but none of you have answered the question. That you don't like Ron Paul's views or don't think he has a chance does not make a post spam.

TJTB: Thanks for your inquiry. I hope that you'll look into Think Richly's links. You can also google him on a wide variety of topics. As just an example of what guides his thinking on domestic issues, see his own words on embryonic stem cell research here: http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul394.html

Answer 1

1. Define Ron Paul's message.

2. Avoid from making sweeping, broad and vague one-line statements. Go into detail about what Ron Paul would do. Don't give us some brain-washed, Hare-Krishna, Ron-Paul-approved version of what his campaign says he will do. That just sounds creepy and wierd.

Answer 2

To really promote his canidancy we need to get him some exposure. This must be done by more means then just the internet. We need to transfer his momentum on the net to the rest of the world.

To do this, we need to get his name out there. Most people who don't spend much time on the internet don't even know who he is. 70% of americans are against the war and he is the only Republican canadate against the war so there is many people that may be frustrated with the Republicans.

The best thing that can be done is to join a local meet up group. I am a member of the meet up group in spokane. We have been putting up Ron Paul rEVOLution signs all over, going to events and handing out info, and getting people excited about Ron Paul.

Go to www.meetup.com and join the local group and GET INVOLVED. Every campaign needs to start somewhere and the first step is getting his name out there. The issues will speak for themselves. The key is not bashing people over the head with his message. If people want a change they will listen and find out more, if not you'll just be beating a dead horse plus you will come off as an extremist.

Answer 3

I used to put "Ron Paul 2008!" and/or his website in a lot of posts a while back. Even I admit, on questions that were marginally related. I saw how annoying it looked when Fred Thompson supporters started doing it, so I stopped.

Another thing is not to jump on every Ron Paul question you see, or try to incorporate him into your answer. I often answer questions w/o a reference to him by name at all.

Sometimes the anti-ron sentiment can be seen, coming from a few core people, and this is true on any board. If you do the research, some are genuinely annoyed, and a lot are intimidated by the support, since it might hurt their candidate, and everyone hates second guessing themselves.

Fortunately, especially lately, I've seen a lot of new faces come up on the 5 or 6 boards I visit, including this one. Detractors come up at about a ratio of 1 for every 8 or 9 new supporters.

I myself get sort of annoyed by the drive-by supporters and detractors of ANY candidate, including Ron Paul's. Just because they support or dislike the same candidate as me, doesn't mean it does any good to come off associated with a rude support base. I leave the rudeness alone most of the time, unless it is blatantly wrong or false.

People also tend not to like long answers, so this is where I end it. You're welcome!

Answer 4

The best thing you can do is to join a Meetup group and go to a meeting. That is how you can actively get involved in Ron Paul's campaign. If you are promoting Ron Paul on the internet you need to do it by writing letters to the editor, bloggin, and posting. The apprioate way to communicate is to stay on message. If it doesn't come from Ron Paul or the campaign then don't use it. Pretend that you are the candidate and if you ever have a question then refer them to the website. Think of politics as life and death. Stay away from people who think of politics as a game.

Answer 5

What I have been doing is just listing some of the things that he has done while in Congress and what has inspired me to vote for him instead of any of the other candidates. To me, he is an experienced candidate with true conservative values. I share more of the same viewpoints with Ron Paul than any of the other candidates. I ususally vote for the person that I think can do the best job and that I agree with. Just talking about the race in 2008 with family and friends has opened their eyes to some of the other candidates. I wouldn't reccommend talking politics at work, unless you can back up what you say and let someone else bring up the topic. You could also solicite the media in your town to do a story on each candidate and ask the news source to be fair to each of the candidates, or become offically involved with the candidacy. Oh, and I also vote on American Idol (you can do BOTH you know).

Answer 6

Since the majority of Americans I meet & talk to, haven't heard of Ron Paul, don't know anything about his political Jeffersonian, Libertarian, Republican, political viewpoints on very key issues that affect all Americans, and since his views clash with the views of most "CFR" {Council on Foriegn Relations} backed political candidates...........

......I feel it is up to me to try to educate anybody interested in Ron Paul's strong un-bending U. S. Constitutional stance on exactly who is supposed to govern America..... A group of rich elitists, or 'We the People'?

One of the members of my Ron Paul meet-up group did an in depth search of the other candidates, Republicans & Democrats,,,,and surprise,, surprise, except for Ron Paul, all are financially backed by members of the empire expansionist group, called the CFR.

The CFR is the 'New World Order'!

Now, we Americans are faced with what may be our last chance of continuing as a 'Soveriegn' nation, governed by the laws set forth by the original founders of the U. S. Constitution, or becoming a nation that is entirely different, and not much different than other nations, that have succumbed to the rich & powerful elite, who are attempting to rule the world!!!!!!!

Ron Paul is our last hope,,,and if this post is considered spam......so...be....it!!!

Thank you.
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Answer 7

I was to doing www.ronpaul2008.com and annoyed a few people - right now I tell people to go to a non partisan site to educate voters about all the candidates www.vote-smart.org and to look especially at who the candidates special interests have voted for in the past - ron paul is the only one left standing - also donate some money to his campaign if you can spare it -because honestly that would probably help pay for advertising and stop the spam

Answer 8

not really to me well, I have not met a hillary or obama or guiliani support make any points(valid, that actually matter) as to why one should vote for "their cadidate" so, I see it as, Ron Paul, supporters see that this is like their one shot at trying to change the things that they see wrong with this country, so, they probably like want to do all out that might be why they come off like you say I for one Support Ron Paul, but I do try to stay aware of things and put them in perpective, say, like, the people who supported hitler, where very fanatical, but, he ran their country to ruins I am not comparing Ron Paul to hitler, I look at what he says, and consider, where they could take us, and, considering he is against illegal wars, I do not at all think that he will ruin this country, (it is already in the down direction), I believe we need something different, and follow the Const. he has my vote :D

Answer 9

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/spam
Spam is unsolicited e-mail, often of a commercial nature, sent indiscriminately to multiple mailing lists, individuals, or newsgroups; junk e-mail.

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?r=2&q=solicit
To Solicit is to make a petition or request, as for something desired or to solicit orders or trade, as for a business.

Your friends, relatives, and maybe neighbors will probably be more interested in your opinions than most other people.
People who have shown an interest in politics are also more likely to listen and more likely to vote.
People who share their opinions with you should be willing to listen to your opinions.
This is called trading opinions.
There are many people both on and off the Internet who like to share opinions.

Do not make your answers longer than they need to be.
Five to twelve sentences is usually enough.

Another important thing is to know what to say when they ask who Ron Paul is or if he has a chance.
http://www.ronpaul2008.com/issues/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_positions_of_Ron_Paul
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=RonPaul2008dotcom
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AosnNt9ybRKEI7HCKCKrQ4fsy6IX?qid=20070806192139AAj3N01&show=7#profile-info-rExxkMP5aa

Answer 10

YEs I love Ron Paul but only answer in relation to him. People get annoyed and generally those are the people who are already researched their candidates but many do not know him yet> Better to write to your local paper etc.

Hope you joined your local RP meetup group.

To TJTB - go to www.ronpaullibrary.org