You know, every time we talk presidential politics on CMR, somebody will send us an email or write a comment about ALL Catholics should be supporting Ron Paul.
There are so many reasons why I could never, would never, support Ron Paul.
Here is reason #372. He blames the US for 9/11. Repeatedly. (Des Moines Register via Gateway)
Two weeks away from the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, presidential candidate and Texas Rep. Ron Paul says that U.S. intervention in the Middle East is a main motivation behind terrorist hostilities toward America, and that Islam is not a threat to the nation.At a campaign stop on Saturday in Winterset, one man asked Paul how terrorist groups would react if the U.S. removed its military presence in Middle Eastern nations, a move the candidate advocates.
“Which enemy are you worried that will attack our national security?” Paul asked.
“If you’re looking for specifics, I’m talking about Islam. Radical Islam,” the man answered.
“I don’t see Islam as our enemy,” Paul said. “I see that motivation is occupation and those who hate us and would like to kill us, they are motivated by our invasion of their land, the support of their dictators that they hate.”
Regarding 9/11, Paul said that attacks against the U.S. from Middle Eastern groups at home and abroad can be traced to the foreign presence of U.S. troops, as well as America’s relationships with dictator regimes.
America is certainly not sinless, don’t get me wrong. But to blame America, for inciting 9/11 is so wrongheaded it is scary. Ron Paul is an Idiot.
August 29, 2011 at 4:45 pm
I don't agree 100% with Ron Paul's comments here, but I don't disagree 100% either. And I still prefer him to most of the other Republican candidates, for many reasons. I think that Steve Skojec and David Alexander make some good points.
August 29, 2011 at 5:05 pm
That isn't idiocy, it is a brief history.
Idiocy is voting at all, since you'll get worse than Ron Paul- you'll get empty suits saying sound bites that have been pre-tested to work on brain dead, TV audiences. Idiocy is not recognizing Osama bin Laden's desire for the Middle East is closer than ever to being realized, while American foreign policy gets more violent and more desperate. The Arab states are very likely to become a pan-arab nation, and while I doubt the viability of an outright Caliphate (because most Muslims seem to want some sort of Democratic Socialism) I certainly think it is far more likely than the State Department's attempts at co-opting what they like to call the 'arab spring.' Can anyone not be dense enough to see Mubarak (Gaddafi, Hussien, whoever is in charge of Pakistan) is our guy? We are either fighting our own guys, or desperately throwing around money to manipulate the people who just overthrew our guys.
American Catholic political commentary is downright sad. From a political standpoint it is like we are just happy with ourselves- being against abortion is enough for instance, rather than actually stopping it. And support of these wars betrays a willingness to be on Team America rather than to seriously consider Catholic teaching. There seems to be an unfathomable reasonableness which leads to voting for the Republican brand of empty suit. The triumphalism of the middle class mindset never ceases, even as evidence suggest riots and unrest will come to your stronghold too. Even if you cannot agree with Ron Paul, you should a least accord him some respect for honesty rather than mouthing crap he doesn't believe in to get your vote.
August 29, 2011 at 6:31 pm
Bravo Patrick! Ron Paul is an idiot and many of his supporters remind me of a cult. Prior to him deciding to play footsie with the "9-11 was an inside job" crazies, his immediate response to the 9-11 attacks was to call for the President to issue letters of marque and reprisal so that we could send private cititens after the terrorists. Ron Paul, like most true ideologues, lives in a world that he has constructed in his mind, and it only bears a passing resemblance to the world that the rest of us inhabit.
August 29, 2011 at 6:32 pm
For the Matthew 5:22 reference: not sure Idiot = "You fool", but I didn't check the Greek. I think Idiot implies mental deficiency and Fool implies silly and stupid, and generally lacking in wisdom. I guess they are similar but geez quoting the Lord warning of hell – pretty strong pushback!
I like Santorum too, but not sure he has enough charisma/star power to pull it off. Somehow Bachmann, Palin, Romney, Paul, Perry, and Gingrich (by his abrasive comments to get air time and viral internet time) are going to pull away. Pawlenty was awful attacking Bachmann. It is one thing to get results as a Governor, it is another to struggle in a corrupt, Democratic controlled and manipulated Congress.
August 29, 2011 at 7:39 pm
@ Donald…
"Ron Paul, like most true ideologues, lives in a world that he has constructed in his mind, and it only bears a passing resemblance to the world that the rest of us inhabit. "
This is probably the most spot-on observation I've seen about Ron Paul and the Paulbots. In fact, the way of thinking is dangerous, and short sighted, and, just plain ignorant.
When you live in your own world you can rail on and on about all kinds of things without having to be accurate. What is sad, is that ignorance is that same reason people voted for Obama.
Worst yet, a combination of ignorance and vociferousness along with a dose of denial are the perfect ingredients for a cult.
Ron Paul, his Paulbots and isolationists and libertarians in general, espouse views with are counter to Church teaching at a minimum. These views would legalized hard core drugs and prostitution, leave the US defenseless against our adversaries, unable to protect our friends or protect our vital economic interests and ultimately lead us to nuclear war. Other than that he's great! Really!
August 29, 2011 at 8:00 pm
He's absolutely right.
August 29, 2011 at 9:55 pm
Yes, Ron Paul is an idiot to try to explain the truth to people like the Catholic Neocons. He should be braying for Mooslum blood, murder them before they come here and get us! Eeek! After all, sending off young people to die is SO much nobler than butchering them in the womb. What an idiot to singlehandedly be opening the eyes of people to the swindle of the Fed, which the bloodthirsty and economically ignorant Catholic Neocons have NO problem with because, well, hey, how else would we fund innumerable holy wars and get all that Mooslum blood and send off young Americans to die Gloriously for the Nation-State! Live by the Sword! Ron Paul is an idiot! You, sir, are not fit to wipe the shoes of Ron Paul! I'm starting to wonder if this site isn't a CIA front, like Buckleys mag. Ugh.
August 29, 2011 at 10:11 pm
"The root cause is not our foreign policy. And anyone who blames our foreign policy for the attacks on 9/11 is an idiot."
… who reads and learns from history, as well as the extremist agenda that is central to Islamism, if not Islam itself. This would make someone who does NOT read or learn from history, or does NOT learn from the history of Islam …
August 29, 2011 at 10:13 pm
Wow! The conspiracy theories always seem to pop up on posts about Ron Paul…wonder why??? Anyone and I mean ANYONE who thinks 9/11 was an inside job IS an idiot, at the very best, IMHO.
August 29, 2011 at 11:34 pm
What this article shows and what a lot of viewers forget is that when it comes to the constitution and the founding fathers Dr Paul is correct. Also please remember that as a ob-gyn he was the ONLY Republican Candidate to attend the 2008 Pro-Life March in Washington DC. Also please keep in mind he served in Vietnam in the 1960's and had the friendship of Ronald Reagan. Also he won every single debate back in 2008. He does not believe 9-11 was an inside job, and he tells the truth which a lot of people do not want to hear. He is the only candidate who can beat Obama according to the polls. Either you put America first or you don't
August 30, 2011 at 2:13 am
Ron Paul is the litmus test. How people talk about and react to this good, truthful and principled man says much more about THEM than HIM. He is such a scary radical to want a return to Constitutional law. What a nut. If only he had worked as a prosecutor for the IRS and lied about being a Dr. If only he had forced a dangerous vaccine on 6th grade girls and tried to shove through the Nafta Superhighway. If only he had bombed a third world country that did nothing to us to secure oil for private companies. If only he lied about his residence to fleece taxpayers of his congressional district.He is obviously not "presidential" enough like the rest of the Republican "top tier".
Thank God for learned and principled Catholics like Thomas Woods and Lew Rockwell.
August 30, 2011 at 2:48 am
It doesn't help to be principled if a good 60% of the time your principles are wrong. Sorry, but Ron Paul is completely bat guano crazy when it comes to economics.
August 30, 2011 at 3:12 am
Our Pope said to not invade Iraq. We did anyway and thousands of Catholics have been killed or fled. We invaded Libya when the bishop of Libya said not to. Now the rebels have released 600+ Al-Quaeda terrorists. On this issue, Ron Paul is right.
August 30, 2011 at 3:55 am
"Ron Paul is an idiot"…….and you're an ass.
August 30, 2011 at 4:35 am
"You reap what you sow" and "blessed are the peacemakers" but I guess those are idiotic statement. Nothing that America's military has done over there fits just war doctrine. Ron Paul is an honest man and at least you know where he stands. What other candidate can you say that about? He is the only anti-war candidate and he is pro-life when it comes to federal policy. It's sad that name calling is all that people turn too because they don't want to face his real arguments. I have lost a lot of respect for Creative Minority Reports due to this post.
August 30, 2011 at 5:28 am
lol… did you need some additional traffic?
August 30, 2011 at 10:16 am
How very odd that a man who is
"bat guano crazy" on economics has been correct on every economic prediction he has made, from the housing bubble to the Feds antics. Go figure. He also receives more campaign contributions from active military than all the other Repubs combined. But what do those dumb soldiers know?
August 30, 2011 at 11:55 am
Let's not forget that it was the dirty Saudis who begged us to save their rear ends from Sadaam in the first gulf war. They couldnt protect themselves or their oil fields. So we went and thereby, in the eyes of the wahabbis, defiled the so-called ' holy land' of islam. Paul is right to some extent but islam is what it has always been, a false religion bent on world domination.
August 30, 2011 at 1:31 pm
I find it amusing that so many principled Paul supporters only want to comment anonymously. And seem to think that those opposed to Paul are either dumb or corrupt.
David L. Alexander, look at history. Extremists of any stripe merely find a rationale for the violence they already want to commit. It frequently is a religious reason, since "God commands I do this" is a powerful motivating factor. To pick any one thing and label it as THE REASON is ludicrous.
People don't fly airplanes into buildings because of another country's foreign policy. It's too indistinct a reason. Specific parts may be the justification they used, but it's not the reason.
While Ron Paul is right on some things, he is oh so wrong on others.
August 30, 2011 at 2:07 pm
Some facts for some people:
The Catholic Church and the United States of America are not equivalent.
The Republican Party is not the Catholic Church.
Americanism is a heresy.