Glenn Greenwald: Ron Paul Distortions and Smears (from 2007)

[geek tragedy]

This raises a broader point. It has become fashionable among certain commentators to hurl insults at Ron Paul such as “huge weirdo,” “fruitcake,” and the like. Interestingly, the same thing was done to another anti-war medical doctor/politician, Howard Dean, back in 2003, as Charles Krauthammer infamously pronounced with regard to Dean that “it’s time to check on thorazine supplies.” Krauthammer subsequently said that “t looks as if Al Gore has gone off his lithium again.”

For a long time now, I’ve heard a lot of people ask: “where are the principled conservatives?” — meaning those on the Right who are willing to oppose the constitutional transgressions and abuses of the Bush administration without regard to party loyalty. A “principled conservative” isn’t someone who agrees with liberals on most issues; that would make them a “principled liberal.” A “principled conservative” is someone who aggressively objects to the radicalism of the neocons and the Bush/Cheney assault on our constitution and embraces a conservative political ideology. That’s what Ron Paul is, and it’s hardly a surprise that he holds many views anathema to most liberals. That hardly makes him a “fruitcake.”

On another note, I wrote in my prior post concerning Paul that I found the efforts (by Neiwert and others) to smear him by linking him to some of his extremist and hate-mongering supporters to be unfair (for reasons I explained here). Neiwert responded and compiled what he thinks is the best evidence to justify this linkage here.

For reasons I’ll detail at another time, I found virtually all of that to be unpersuasive, relying almost entirely on lame guilt-by-association arguments that could sink most if not all candidates (the only arguably disturbing evidence in this regard is this 1996 Houston Chronicle article, which Neiwert didn’t mention, and the pro-Paul response is here). Everyone can review the evidence — all of which is quite old and very little of which relies on any of Paul’s own statements — and make up their own minds.

http://www.salon.com/2007/11/12/paul_3/

[blogslut]

1. Oh my

[Quantess]

2. What do you hope to accomplish by posting this here?

I hate to ascribe motives to DUers, but sometimes I wonder.

[geek tragedy]

3. Paul's racism has never bothered a lot of affluent white 'progressives'

It's pretty clear that those who claimed to not see the racism simply did not find it relevant.

[FarLeftFist]

6. Because some of them are racists as well.

[joshcryer]

9. White people just are out of touch.

I think it's true that one should not ever attribute to malice what can be best explained by stupidity, ignorance, privilege, etc.

[FarLeftFist]

4. "A principled conservative" LOL. Yeah, right down to the racism and homophobia.

[geek tragedy]

5. But, but, but WEED. nt

[FarLeftFist]

8. I have no problem getting it.

[joshcryer]

7. This was posted during the epic GG threads.

He's always been a borderline Paul shill. He is careful though and doesn't outright advocate, just says nice things, which are bad enough, but what can ya do. I don't be participating in the fallout from this thread as his defenders come to the charge.

[arely staircase]

10. ron paul and glenn greenwald are just boring

i'm embarrassed i ever got worked up about either.

[abelenkpe]

11. A neo confederate bigot is what makes Paul a fruitcake.