As a general rule, I don’t get too wrapped up in politics. The way I see it, life seems too short and full of other, more worthwhile distractions. That said, one can’t help but get a little more involved and informed around election years, because even as someone who rarely watches television and never listens to the radio, it’s impossible not to overhear things in passing or see a news item trying to get to my email. In what little coverage I’ve seen so far, the most interesting person to emerge as a candidate has been Texas senator Ron Paul. There are a few of Paul’s positions that I dislike or don’t necessarily agree with, but at least he will tell you exactly where he stands on an issue and refuses to back down and reverse his statements based on popular opinion. This is even stranger considering that Paul is seeking the nomination of the Republican party, a party I generally find myself loathing. In 2004 I held my nose and voted for John Kerry, as I felt he was the least moronic of two barely-distinguishable numbskulls. I think it was an Adbusters magazine I was flipping through while drinking coffee downtown one evening where I happened upon a poem in the letters section that went something like this:

American politics
Republican ideas are dumb
and Democrats have none

Short, sweet and most importantly, true, which, as the late Bill Hicks once said “gives it the force, that extra oomph.” Coming back to Ron Paul, he seems to me to be the most honorable of the candidates running on either side of the metaphorical fence. The thing that bothers me most about the Democratic party is that they can never find a solid position from which to assert their views. In 2004 they seemed to run on a platform of “At least he’s not Bush!” Now, as the next election approaches, they seem to be running on another substance-free ‘rock star’ platform. Instead of coming to the table with actual ideas and solid arguments, they’re offering little more than an unproven senator and a seemingly universally-disliked senator and former First Lady, banking hard on the fact that their prize horses are black and female, respectively. Is it any wonder, then, that even when the opposition very often seems so out of tune with the American public, that the alternative seems an even shittier choice?

Here are three videos of Ron Paul in the debates thus far, his words for the most part coming across like a wrecking ball of common sense. Time will tell whether Paul will remain as golden as he seems at the moment, but right now he’s looking pretty damn good.

May 3, 2007 Debate

May 15, 2007 Debate

May 16, 2007 Debate Response