Paul Volcker is lauded as the man who brought down inflation. But actually inflation came down everywhere during the 80s and 90s, for one reason and another, in countries with mediocre central banks and well-run central banks. Looking back, the high price of gold meant that it would have been possible for the Fed to give full backing to the monetary base when Volcker came in. So perhaps Volcker was not such a hero after all.

What's truly astonishing about Paul is his principled ability to unify people that a few years ago one would have thought have absolutely nothing in common... It's a drastically different approach from the usualy slimey political tactic of trying to be all things to be all people, and very suited to the youtube age. Intrade says he has no chance even to win the nomination. Whether or not that is right this time around, it is important to remind oneself of how wrong the pundits can be:-

Sparks and prairie fires: A theory of unanticipated political revolution - Timur Kuran

"A feature shared by certain major revolutions is that they were not anticipated. Here is an explanation, which hinges on the observation that people who come to dislike their government are apt to hide their desire for change as long as the opposition seems weak. Because of this preference falsification, a government that appears unshakeable might see its support crumble following a slight surge in the opposition's apparent size, caused by events insignificant in and of themselves. Unlikely though the revolution may have appeared in foresight, it will in hindsight appear inevitable because its occurrence exposes a panoply of previously hidden conflicts".

http://econ.duke.edu/uploads/assets/Peop...0fires.pdf

Word. I also feel that the people who own the media are doing their damnedest to marginalize the opposition, i.e. Ron Paul, OWS, etc.. The FBI has gone so far as to attempt to infiltrate Anonymous with hilarious consequences. What the people who make these short sighted attacks fail to realize is that they derive their power from us, the consent of us to be governed. It is this way in every government whether the government manages to brainwash this realization out of its people or not.
I'm digressing though. I am entirely enamored of Sen. Paul because he is the only honest politician in the public spotlight. Yes, he is definitely a Texan, Mark. Fortunately, he doesn't come out of the same camp that's producing the Bushes & the Perrys, lol.