Please - No More Talk of Reagan

I’m getting a little tired of the comparison of Dr. Paul to Ronald Reagan. Reagan said a lot of things to get elected. The difference between the two men is Dr. Paul means what he says, will cut spending and will reverse the militarization of US policy. Reagan’s military build up opened the floodgates of profligate spending.

Regan’s strategy for ending the “Cold War” was to out spend the USSR and threaten them with “Star Wars”. Star Wars anti-missile technology, if ever developed, would have ended the policy of mutually assured destruction that was the basis for avoiding nuclear war. The Soviets, who did not have access to trillions of dollars worth of credit were forced to cry uncle, take their toys and go home.

Unfortunately, instead of the US responding in kind, our national leaders decided it would be good to advance into the areas from which the USSR withdrew. Other parts of the world, such as our “allies” in the Middle East, had aligned themselves with the US so as to not be threatened by the USSR. They did not do so because they wanted to be just like us. They aligned with us because they didn’t want to be like the Soviets. The US had promised them freedom not eternal occupation.

Now that the Soviet threat is no longer, countries that allowed the US to protect them during the Cold War have little need for US presence in their countries. They now both want and deserve the chance to decide their own future without the guidance of the US. If in the end they decide to be friends of the US, we will have achieved a true peace. If they choose a different path, at least the US will have been honest about its stated belief in self-determination.

Reagan was a man for a different time. While parts of their campaign platforms are similar, Reagan’s actions once elected were very different from what he promised when campaigning and not at all in line with what Dr. Paul has demonstrated he will do when elected. In Reagan’s defense, the policies he supported have been continued by every administration since he left office.

It’s time for real change. Reagan may have been the right man for his time but his policies are a big part of the reason the nation is in the position it now finds itself. If Dr. Paul is unsuccessful in his bid for the Republican nomination, his message should not be abandoned in an effort to obtain a Republican victory in the general election. It’s not about Republican vs. Democrat. There’s no real difference between the two. The nation may not be able to survive another “Reagan Administration”.