So I’ve decided to vote in the New Jersey Republican primary in February. We have what’s known as an “open primary” in NJ, which means independents can vote in a party’s primary, but once they do they are considered registered to that party. So I’ll technically be a Republican after never before belonging to a political party.

I’m not much of a belonger, but I figure it’s worth becoming a Republican in name only in order to vote for Ron Paul and support the libertarian groundswell he’s building.

That said, I’m still not a big fan of many of Dr. Paul’s specific policies. I agree with this article about Paul’s foreign policy, for example, but I still think the vote will be worthwhile to spread the libertarian message, and it’s not like he actually has a chance of even winning the nomination.

UPDATE: I agree with this from Instapundit :

RON PAUL: He’s just terrible, even when — which is often, once he’s off the subject of the war — I agree with him. His voice is too high, he can’t remember who the Kurds are, and he often comes off like a crazy old man in a bus station.

But that’s good news, in a way. Paul’s doing better than anyone expected. It’s abundantly clear that he’s not doing it on charisma and rhetorical skill. Which means that libertarian ideas are actually appealing, since Ron Paul isn’t. Paul’s flaws as a vessel for those ideas prove the ideas’ appeal. If they sell with him as the pitchman, they must be really resonating. I suspect Paul himself would agree with this analysis. Er, except maybe the bus station part.