The Revolution: A Manifesto

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Overview

This Much Is True: You Have Been Lied To.

The government is expanding.
Taxes are increasing.
More senseless wars are being planned.
Inflation is ballooning.
Our basic freedoms are disappearing.

The Founding Fathers didn't want any of this. In fact, they said so quite clearly in the Constitution of the United States of America. Unfortunately, that beautiful, ingenious, and revolutionary document is being ignored more and more in Washington. If we are to enjoy peace, freedom, and prosperity once again, we absolutely must return to the principles upon which America was founded. But finally, there is hope . . .

In THE REVOLUTION, Texas congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul has exposed the core truths behind everything threatening America, from the real reasons behind the collapse of the dollar and the looming financial crisis, to terrorism and the loss of our precious civil liberties. In this book, Ron Paul provides answers to questions that few even dare to ask.

Despite a media blackout, this septuagenarian physician-turned-congressman sparked a movement that has attracted a legion of young, dedicated, enthusiastic supporters . . . a phenomenon that has amazed veteran political observers and made more than one political rival envious. Candidates across America are already running as "Ron Paul Republicans."

"Dr. Paul cured my apathy," says a popular campaign sign. THE REVOLUTION may cure yours as well.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781600243554
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Publication date: 5/28/2008
Format: CD
Edition description: Unabridged
Sales rank: 595,456
Product dimensions: 5.25 (w) x 5.75 (h) x 0.75 (d)

Meet the Author

Ron Paul

Ron Paul, an eleven-term congressman from Texas, is the leading advocate of freedom in our nation's capital. He has devoted his political career to the defense of individual liberty, sound money, and a non-interventionist foreign policy. Judge Andrew Napolitano calls him "the Thomas Jefferson of our day."

Read an Excerpt

The Revolution

By Ron Paul Grand Central Publishing
Copyright © 2008
Ron Paul
All right reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-446-53751-3

Chapter One Every election season America is presented with a series of false choices. Should we launch preemptive wars against this country or that one? Should every American neighborhood live under this social policy or that one? Should a third of our income be taken away by an income tax or a national sales tax? The shared assumptions behind these questions, on the other hand, are never cast in doubt, or even raised. And anyone who wants to ask different questions or who suggests that the questions as framed exclude attractive, humane alternatives, is ipso facto excluded from mainstream discussion.

And so every four years we are treated to the same tired, predictable routine: two candidates with few disagreements on fundamentals pretend that they represent dramatically different philosophies of government.

The supposedly conservative candidate tells us about "waste" in government, and ticks off $10 million in frivolous pork-barrel projects that outrage him-the inevitable bridge-to-nowhere project, or a study of the effects of celery consumption on arresting memory loss-in order to elicit laughter and applause from partisan audiences. All right, so that's 0.00045 percent of the federal budget dealt with; what does he propose to do with the other 99.99955 percent, in order to return our country to living within its means? Not a word. Those same three or four silly programs will be brought up all campaign long, and that's all we'll hear about where the candidate stands on spending. But conservatives are told that they must support these candidates, and so they do, hoping for the best. And nothing changes.

Even war doesn't really distinguish the two parties from each other. Hillary Clinton and John Kerry voted for the Iraq war. With the exceptions of Dennis Kucinich and Mike Gravel, even the Democrats who postured as antiwar candidates for the 2008 primary elections are not especially opposed to needless wars. They typically have a laundry list of other military interventions they would support, none of which make any sense, would make our country any safer, or would do a thing to return our country to fiscal sanity. But liberals are told that they must support these candidates, and so they do, hoping for the best. And nothing changes.

A substantial portion of the conservative movement has become a parody of its former self. Once home to distinguished intellectuals and men of letters, it now tolerates and even encourages anti-intellectualism and jingoism that would have embarrassed earlier generations of conservative thinkers. There are still some good and decent conservative leaders to be found, and a portion of the grass roots has remained uncorrupted by the transformation of conservatism into just another Big Government movement. But Big Government at home and abroad seems to suit many conservative spokesmen just fine. Once in a while they will latch on to phony but conservative-sounding causes like "tax reform"-almost always a shell game in which taxes are shuffled around rather than actually reduced overall-in order to pacify the conservative base, but that's about it.

When Republicans won a massive off-year election victory in 1994, neoconservative Bill Kristol immediately urged them not to do anything drastic but to wait until the Republicans took the White House in 1996. Well, the Republicans didn't take the White House in 1996, so nothing ever got done. Instead, the Republican leadership urged these freshman congressmen to focus on a toothless, soporific agenda called the Contract with America that was boldly touted as a major overhaul of the federal government. Nothing could have been further from the truth. The Contract with America was typical of what I have just described: no fundamental questions are ever raised, and even supposedly radical and revolutionary measures turn out to be modest and safe. In fact, the Brookings Institution in effect said that if this is what conservatives consider revolutionary, then they have basically conceded defeat.

Needless to say, I am also unimpressed by the liberal Left. Although they posture as critical thinkers, their confidence in government is inexcusably naive, based as it is on civics-textbook platitudes that bear absolutely zero resemblance to reality. Not even their position on unnecessary wars is consistent-Hillary Clinton and John Kerry both supported the Iraq war, for instance, and the major Democratic candidates in 2008 who claim to be antiwar are generally eager to invade some other country apart from Iraq. Even Howard Dean was all in favor of Bill Clinton's intervention in Bosnia, going so far as to urge the president to take unilateral military action beyond the multilateral activity already taking place. Liberals at the grass roots, on the other hand, have been deeply alienated by the various betrayals by which a movement they once supported has made its peace with the establishment.

No wonder frustrated Americans have begun referring to our two parties as the Republicrats. And no wonder the news networks would rather focus on $400 haircuts than matters of substance. There are no matters of substance.

In late 2006, a number of friends and colleagues urged me to consider running for president. I was a reluctant candidate, not at all convinced that a sizable enough national constituency existed for a campaign based on liberty and the Constitution rather than on special-interest pandering and the distribution of loot.

Was I ever wrong.

On November 5, 2007, we set a record when we raised over $4 million online in a single day. That December 16, on the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, we broke that record by raising over $6 million. In the fourth quarter of 2007, we raised more money than any other Republican candidate. Not only is the freedom message popular, but if fund-raising ability is any indication, it is more intensely popular than any other political message.

By the end of 2007, more than twice as many Meetup groups had been formed in support of our campaign than for all the rest of the candidates in both major parties combined. I have never seen such a diverse coalition rallying to a single banner. Republicans, Democrats, Independents, Greens, constitutionalists, whites, blacks, Hispanics, Asian-Americans, antiwar activists, home-schoolers, religious conservatives, freethinkers-all were not only involved, but enthusiastically so. And despite their philosophical differences in some areas, these folks typically found, to their surprise, that they rather liked each other.

The mainstream media had no idea what to make of it, since we were breaking all the rules and yet still attracting such a varied and passionate following. I began making this a central point of my public speeches: the reason all these different groups are rallying to the same banner, I said, is that freedom has a unique power to unite us.

In case that sounds like a cliché, it isn't. It's common sense. When we agree not to treat each other merely as means to our own selfish ends, but to respect one another as individuals with rights and goals of our own, cooperation and goodwill suddenly become possible for the first time.

My message is one of freedom and individual rights. I believe individuals have a right to life and liberty and that physical aggression should be used only defensively. We should respect each other as rational beings by trying to achieve our goals through reason and persuasion rather than threats and coercion. That, and not a desire for "economic efficiency," is the primary moral reason for opposing government intrusions into our lives: government is force, not reason.

People seem to think I am speaking of principles foreign to the Republican tradition. But listen to the words of Robert A. Taft, who in the old days of the Republican Party was once its standard-bearer:

When I say liberty I do not simply mean what is referred to as "free enterprise." I mean liberty of the individual to think his own thoughts and live his own life as he desires to think and to live; the liberty of the family to decide how they wish to live, what they want to eat for breakfast and for dinner, and how they wish to spend their time; liberty of a man to develop his ideas and get other people to teach those ideas, if he can convince them that they have some value to the world; liberty of every local community to decide how its children shall be educated, how its local services shall be run, and who its local leaders shall be; liberty of a man to choose his own occupation; and liberty of a man to run his own business as he thinks it ought to be run, as long as he does not interfere with the right of other people to do the same thing.

As we'll see in a later chapter, Taft was also an opponent of needless wars and of unconstitutional presidential war-making.

This is the Republican tradition to which I belong.

Early on in my presidential campaign, people began describing my message and agenda as a "revolution." In a way, it is, albeit a peaceful one. In a country with a political debate as restricted as ours, it is revolutionary to ask whether we need troops in 130 countries and whether the noninterventionist foreign policy recommended by our Founding Fathers might not be better. It is revolutionary to ask whether the accumulation of more and more power in Washington has been good for us. It is revolutionary to ask fundamental questions about privacy, police-state measures, taxation, social policy, and countless other matters.

This revolution, though, is not altogether new. It is a peaceful continuation of the American Revolution and the principles of our Founding Fathers: liberty, self-government, the Constitution, and a noninterventionist foreign policy. That is what they taught us, and that is what we now defend.

I was never interested in writing a campaign book as they tend to have (deservedly) short shelf lives. But the ideas I have been promoting, and which have struck such a powerful chord with so many Americans, are ideas that are overlooked and neglected because they do not fit into the template of trivial questions with which I opened this chapter. This book is an opportunity to highlight and explain them in the kind of systematic fashion that campaign speeches and presidential debates simply do not allow.

The revolution my supporters refer to will persist long after my retirement from politics. Here is my effort to given them a long-term manifesto based on ideas, and perhaps some short-term marching orders.

At the same time, I am also describing what the agenda of George W. Bush's successor should be if we want to move toward a free society once again. Our country is facing an unprecedented financial crisis precisely because the questions our political and media establishments allow us to ask are so narrow. Whether or not politicians actually want to hear them, it has never been more important for us to begin posing significant and fundamental questions. "In all affairs," Bertrand Russell once said, "it's a healthy thing now and then to hang a question mark on the things you have long taken for granted." I'm not in the habit of quoting Russell, but when in American history has his sentiment been more true?

(Continues...)

Excerpted from The Revolution by Ron Paul Copyright © 2008 by Ron Paul. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Preface     ix
The False Choices of American Politics     1
The Foreign Policy of the Founding Fathers     9
The Constitution     41
Economic Freedom     69
Civil Liberties and Personal Freedom     109
Money: The Forbidden Issue in American Politics     137
The Revolution     157
A Reading List for a Free and Prosperous America     169

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Anonymous

Posted September 9, 2008

Concise eye opener

Ron Paul is the champion of the people and this book is proof. Unlike other political texts, he doesn't promote an agenda that reeks of lobbyist influence. He can't be bought by big interests because we, the people, are his big interest. The examples Paul sites concerning the current deplorable state of American politics are clear and to the point, as are his examples of how to fix them. I will never view our 2 party system the same way again and I pray that his vision of intelligent hope spreads.

14 out of 14 people found this review helpful.
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turboscott

Posted February 2, 2009

This book is PROOF Ron Paul should be our next PRESIDENT!!!

I am a skeptical person by nature. I am also able to break things down to the simplest point very easily. As a result I have felt our government has been screwing us for quite a few years. This book proves many of my suspicions and gives the proof. I can't imagine Mr. Paul has many friends within the Congress since he clearly does not operate the same way the majority of them do.

It has been obvious to me for some time that our "political leaders" operate in THEIR best interest and this book shows how I was right. He does not give specifics such as which Senator did what, etc... He does point out how our Presidents have behaved, in some cases illegally, all the way back to FDR.

My only complaint with this book is that is was not longer and didn't go into more details. But, he probably understands that in order for him to continue his mission of freeing the American citizens that he needs to stay alive. Giving up too many details will probably get him killed by the CIA, at the direction of his own government.

This book should be required reading for every American!!!!!!!!!!

GREAT BOOK, BETTER LEADER.

7 out of 7 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted October 8, 2008

Jaw dropping.

This book has opened my eyes to the unrest in the middle east. How would I feel if another country assassinated my democratically elected president? That's just what the US government did in Iran. No wonder they hate us. However Ron Paul provides many solutions to get the US back on track. Not all solutions are easy to digest, but many are strikingly simple. Just follow the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

6 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
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Martothir

Posted July 17, 2010

more from this reviewer

A Contrary Mindset to Politics as Normal

Ron Paul gives us a very interesting takes on American politics, one that is rarely voiced by any politician in the modern era. Being a strong proponent of smaller government, responsible spending, and democratic rule, he's seems to be the antithesis to the political movements (both Democrat and Republican) of the times.

Unapologetically, he sets out a road plan to a fairly libertarian view of American society. Though his views are certainly biased (a bias toward giving the people more power and liberty and restricting the government), and some of his ideas may be impractical (as much as we all hate the Fed, I don't think its going anywhere), if nothing else the book is very provocative, challenging certain political assumptions we as a country have established. The only stipulation is liberty for the people. A must read for anyone who is disenchanted with the current state of our politics, anyone who wants to expand their political horizons.

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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ConanT2

Posted February 20, 2010

Should be a High School Textbook

This short, to-the-point manuscript should be mandatory reading for every voting American. Written in plain almost blunt language, this manifesto is Dr. Paul's perscription for Americans with a liberty deficiency. His straightforward histories of how we came to be overtaxed, under-represented, and largely ignored by our federal government will make you angry to your core. Be warned! This book may change your politcal views FOREVER!

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted August 27, 2009

Worse that Dubya

Wanna know the real Dr. Paul? Go read his newsletters he published from late 1970's to the mid 1990's. You'll get such wonderful insights like gays catch AIDS on purpose because they want sympathy, Martin Luther King was a bisexual pedophile, and former Klan boss David Duke's near election to the U.S. Senate was a sign of hope. He now says he didn't have anything to do with these newsletters which had his name writen on it.

Truth is that prior to his status as internet phenomenon, Paul's base was made up of militia members, neo-Nazis, White Nationalists, Klansmen, and other "freedom loving people." Now he's using the internet to present himself as a hip anti-establishment figure to those who don't know any better.

2 out of 37 people found this review helpful.
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BigBounce89

Posted May 28, 2010

Ron Paul 2012

This book will make a believer out of anyone. The way Dr. Paul backs everything in the book with the Constitution makes his positions logical and easy for Americans to relate to. His foreign policy is backed by the founding fathers' beliefs that the US should be a model for other nations through diplomacy and noninterventionalism. His anti-big government policies give all of us hope that someone is out there who will be able to shrink the size of the national government and allow us to live our lives without government intervention. He clearly lays out how to pull ourselves out of this economic slump. Please read this enlightening manifesto by Congress's most honest and logical member. Get revolutionized.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted October 15, 2009

I Also Recommend:

the revolution is in need

"the revolution" is a remarkable blueprint put together by congressman ron paul who is showing the american people that we are being over taxed and as a goverment wasting too much money and losing too many jobs and our politicans and leaders are not showing leadership and standing by the constitution. this book is a real eye opener and should be read by every voter as a way to judge their politicans. I think this book will make a difference in the elections of 2010 and 2012

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Stuie

Posted October 23, 2008

Wow! An Unbelievable Truth that must be revealed to All Americans!

Ron Paul is one of the last great freedom fighters of this generation. As you will see in this book, if we as Americans don't wake up soon, and stand up in the name of liberty, it will all come crashing down around us sooner than we know.

Paul points out the fantasy world in which we are living in. Extreme econmonic bubbles and bursts, can easily be traced to government intervention, as he explains. Furthermore, our government's answer is what? that's right, more intervention into our businesses, and our personal lives!

He points out that, With 700 military bases around the world in over 130 countries, our military looks not like national defense, but instead, an ambitious force with the intent growing a more powerful empire. In which case, our forces are stretched too thin, leaving American citizens less safe, and stuck paying the bill!

On, and On, and On, Paul brings to light the atrocious and immoral medling that the United States Governement is doing: all in the name of bogus claims that have no merit, such as "We will save the economy", "in the fight against terrorism", etc., with no regard for the civil and econonmic liberties and freedoms in which we are "supposed" to have been born with as an ineliable right!

In addition, he points out the blatant disreguard that our modern day politicians and lawmakers have for the sovereignty of the constitution. In fact when real questions are brought up and the constitution mentioned, it is ignored and laughed at! I don't know about you, but when I came to understand this, I became infuriated!

This is not propganda, this is a Truth. Americans.....read this book, take the red pill, and view the "Matrix" in which you live in, from the outside looking in. I recommend this book 100 times fold, and in the words of the great William Wallace as portrayed in "Braveheart" I leave you today......"FFFFRRREEEEEEEEEEEDDDDDOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM"

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted May 28, 2008

Inspiring

This has been a great read from my political beginner's point of view. Paul hammers the necessity of freedom socially and (mainly in this book) economically, and how both freedoms truly do go hand in hand. It's an inspiring work with plenty of information and sources to get those who are fresh into politics a head start.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted April 24, 2008

Finally Truth

I can breath again, finally someone in government is telling us the truth. This well written book by Ron Paul opens the door to many issues facing americans today, and reminds us of our foundation in the Constitution as Americans. I cryed at the end for our ideals are so worth the extra effort to perserve them. Thank you Ron Paul!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted December 26, 2011

Great insight

Ron Paul is a freethinker who does not get the press coverage that he deserves. This book helps to get a glimpse at the Ron Paul plan of action. Highly reccomend for those interested in politics.
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jrankcpm

Posted August 3, 2011

An eye opener

If you want to lay awake at night wondering how this country got so far away from what our forefathers has envisioned then read this book. But be warned Ron Paul is the only honest guy left in Washington and has no desire to make you feel good about our current status for his personal gain. He simply wants to save our country and return it to the people.
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TWescott

Posted June 12, 2011

more from this reviewer

Interesting+Read

Well+formatted+and+thought+provoking.
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9484922

Posted May 1, 2011

Revolutionary

This book woke me up and Dr. Ron Paul cured my apathy. When I first read it, I felt as if Dr. Paul was saying all of the things I had been thinking, but put them much more eloquently and used historical references. The end of the book has a suggested reading list which hasn't disappointed me yet. After reading this book you will want to discuss it with all of your friends. Freedom is popular!
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AKNeal

Posted December 30, 2010

A must read for all Americans, period.

This book clearly outlines what our founders had in mind for our country and gives us, the people, a guide to getting our country back on track.
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KDerentz

Posted May 24, 2010

I Also Recommend:

A must read for every Republican or Democrat

Dr Paul's book "The Revolution" opened my eyes to a whole new world of politics. For once in my life I felt as if someone was speaking from the heart and not for personal gain. His Libertarian perspective may seem a little "wild" or "crazy" to some but with our current state of fairs here in the US it seems just like the type of change we need. Anyone in to politics should read this book no matter what side of the isle you sit on as it makes you ask questions you never thought before.
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ghost_of_poe

Posted January 24, 2010

more from this reviewer

interesting but over the top.

ron paul's push for returning to the gold standard is his best point.i'm always a littel leery of paul because he has too many "black helicopter" types that follow him.i recommend this read to gain new perspectives on the the discussion of america's fiscal bankruptcy.

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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HST4MYR

Posted January 11, 2010

refreshing

I thought this manifesto was refreshing in the consistency of his application of his own principles. He seems to have a framework or belief system based on the original promise of our constitutional republic that he applies to each issue rather than grabbing at popular social issues and cramming them together in order to sell a popular ideology. I think every American should at least read it. Even if one doesn't agree point by point, it may make them more apt to not naturally assume a giant governmental role on every little issue in our own lives... which of course was the original intent.
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gladwell

Posted April 13, 2009

Great

Ron Paul is a man that stands for what he believes in.. a True american! This has some great ideas this is a must Read!
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More About This Book

Overview

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Product Details

Meet the Author

Ron Paul

Read an Excerpt

Table of Contents

Rating Distribution

Concise eye opener

This book is PROOF Ron Paul should be our next PRESIDENT!!!

Jaw dropping.

A Contrary Mindset to Politics as Normal

Should be a High School Textbook

Worse that Dubya

Ron Paul 2012

the revolution is in need

Wow! An Unbelievable Truth that must be revealed to All Americans!

Inspiring

Finally Truth

Great insight

An eye opener

Interesting+Read

Revolutionary

A must read for all Americans, period.

A must read for every Republican or Democrat

interesting but over the top.

refreshing

Great