He endured death threats and smear campaigns. He worked for a brief time in his younger days as a male prostitute, and flyers with this information were posted all over town. He was undeterred by these tactics. You can read more about him here. You can also see Lonsdale featured in a BBC documentary about Scientology, including a scene in which uberhandler Tommy Davis rushes onto the scene to make sure that reporter John Sweeney knows about Lonsdale’s minor criminal convictions. The link takes you to a compilation video of what Sweeney endured in filming his documentary. Lonsdale’s bit starts at around 2:45.)

And now, one week after the most widespread anti-Scientology action in history, he is dead from what police are calling an “apparent suicide.”

Read More:

Dream’s End » Suspicious Death of Scientology Critic Shawn Lonsdale

[Photo: Douglas R. Clifford | Times (2006)]

Shawn Lonsdale documents people in downtown Clearwater while filming as part of his “cult watch.” From hours and hours of footage of Scientology buildings, staff, security guards and verbal confrontations, he made a film that aired on local cable television.

Northpinellas: Scourge of Scientology dies in apparent suicide

Why Has Ron Paul All But Suspended His Presidential Campaign?
Congressman makes a shrewd decision to safeguard amazing progress made by retaining Congressional seat

Join Craig York and SMiles Lewis as they talk with Patrick Huyghe, Editor-in-Chief of Anomalist Books, Past Editor of the Simon & Schuster imprint Paraview Pocket Books, Editor and Webmaster at the phenomenal Anomalist.com news site, and an accomplished science writer covering all things anomalous, cryptozoological, fortean, parapsychological and ufological!

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Via Jeff Schulman and Lew Rockwell:

Ron Paul received more military donations in the 4th quarter than all his opponents combined. And from more individual donors combined to boot.

Paul: $286,764; 1349 donors
McCain: $79,597; 413 donors
Romney: $29,250; 140 donors
Huckabee: $24,562; 94 donors

Obama: $81,037; 466 donors
Clinton: $49,523; 181 donors 

Hat tip to Stress » Ron Paul Received More Military Donations Than All Other Candidates Combined

The Madness of John McCain

by Justin Raimondo

By 1999, in defense of Clinton’s war, McCain was declaring, “I think the United States should inaugurate a 21st-century policy interpretation of the Reagan Doctrine, call it rogue state rollback, in which we politically and materially support indigenous forces within and outside of rogue states to overthrow regimes that threaten our interests and values.” …

Prefiguring the revolutionary Jacobinism of Bush’s second inaugural address, which proclaimed the goal of U.S. foreign policy to be “ending tyranny in our world,” McCain was straining at the bit to launch a global crusade while George W. Bush was still touting the virtues of a more “humble foreign policy.” Neither time nor bitter experience has mitigated his militancy.

Other politicians were transformed by 9/11. McCain was unleashed. His strategy of “rogue state rollback” was exactly what the neoconservatives in the Bush administration had in mind, and yet, ever mindful to somehow stand out from the pack while still going along with the program, the senator took umbrage at Rumsfeld’s apparent unwillingness to chew up the U.S. military in an endless occupation. He publicly dissented from the “light footprint” strategy championed by the Department of Defense. More troops, more force, more of everything—that is McCain’s solution to every problem in our newly conquered province.

Read the rest.

Hat Tip to Scott Horton at Stress » The Madness of John McCain

Los Angeles Times : News Shocker: Ron Paul biggest GOP fundraiser last quarter

Well, it’s official, ladies and gentlemen. Believe it or not, Rep. Ron Paul, the 72-year-old Texan who hardly ever gets mentioned in Republican political news and the one-time libertarian who always gets the least time on TV debates if he isn’t barred completely, was, in fact, the most successful Republican fundraiser in the last three months of 2007.

By a Texas mile.

News Shocker: Ron Paul biggest GOP fundraiser last quarter