As soon as Ron Paul got his first chance to speak during this morning’s Republican debate in Iowa, what seemed like 1/5th to 1/4th of the audience erupted in raucous applause and whoops and cheers in response to his answer. It was disruptive, almost unruly.

Between that and their internet graffiti, I still gotta wonder: what is up with those people?

But you know, if Ron Paul and Mike Gravel have half a brain between them, they’ll unite on an independent or Libertarian ticket once they get downsized out of their parties’ debates. As of July 28th, after Mike Gravel saw a huge spike in internet traffic following the YouTube debate, the two of them command a combined internet market share of 18.6%, which would wedge them between Obama’s 29.6% and Hillary’s 17.4%. You wanna talk about the potential for disruption? (Not to mention the number of times I could continue to ask, “What’s wrong with those people?”)

Could you imagine what kind of online phenom Ross Perot could have been in 2007 with his EDS foundation to boot?

In other GOP highlights, Tommy Thompson vowed to end breast cancer by 2015 after it’s afflicted three of the women in his life; that’s quite a bold move, but probably easier to make when you don’t have much hope of having to fulfill it. And Sam Brownback probably hit the nail on the head of Mitt Romney’s fear of a YouTube debate, citing YouTube footage of a 1994 Romney speech as evidence he’s not pro-life enough. Oh, and, of course, everything that’s wrong with your health care coverage can be blamed on illegal immigrants.

On the health care note, I already forget who in particular said this — I think it was Huckabee — but the admonition was, “It is not the responsibility of the government to provide womb to tomb health care to its people.” I can acknowledge that as a clear and even defensible position to have, but I just have to ask: if we really are the greatest nation on earth, then why not?



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