craschworks

And it’s already generating media exposure:

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS119278+07-Dec-2007+PRN20071207

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/story?id=3965657&page=1

http://www.boston.com/news/local/politics/primarysource/2007/12/get_ready_bosto.html

http://news.aol.com/political-machine/2007/12/07/a-ron-paul-blimp-in-every-pot/

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnw/20071207/pl_usnw/presidential_candidate_ron_paul_has_a_blimp

However, they still need to raise an additional $175 K to keep the blimp in the air for the full month before the New Hampshire primaries–the $200 K is just a deposit. Anything over that will go toward keeping the blimp flying even longer.

First video of the Ron Paul blimp!

After a short interview on XMRadio just now they called back and asked if they could be on the blimp when it goes over Washington D.C. Other reporters have asked for the same.

They’re pretty confident that they’ll be able to fly it over Wall Street, Times Square, and other restricted airspaces:

Note that they need to raise $200 K by Friday in order to make stops on the way from Elizabeth City, NC to Boston, MA. At the current donation rate, they will still make it to Boston by the 16th, but won’t have time to make any stops.

http://www.moreintelligentlife.com/node/697

He had written fairy tales, detective stories, melodramas, thrillers and fantasies. But when Philip Pullman embarked on his trilogy, “His Dark Materials”, he went back to the most fundamental story of all: the one with the snake, the apple and the fig leaf. He recast Adam and Eve as a 12-year-old girl and boy living in parallel universes, who meet, fall in love and spend the night together. This time God, known as the Authority, fades away and dies. “I thought there would be a small audience,” Pullman says, “a few clever kids somewhere and a few intelligent adults who thought, ‘That’s all right, quite enjoyed it.’” Well, he got that wrong.

The books have been translated into 40 languages and sold 15m copies, and that’s only the beginning. In 2003 and 2004, a stage version was a big hit at the National Theatre in London. This month the phenomenon goes to another level with the release of the film, starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig. It’s produced by New Line, which brought us “The Lord of the Rings” 1, 2 and 3. By the time New Line has worked its way through the trilogy, Pullman’s rewrite of Genesis 3 will have gone far beyond its bedtime-reading, Waterstone’s-shopping, theatre-going constituency. It will have become a story known by people who may not even read.

The Ron Paul Blimp project is now taking donations. So far, they’ve raised $89,000. If they can get to $200,000 by Friday, they can get the balloon in the air in time for the Boston Tea Party on December 16th.

Ron Paul is looking for students who would like to spend 9-10 days campaigning in Iowa for him. The campaign will provide food, lodging, gas, and of course campaign materials…

http://community.livejournal.com/ronpaul2008/212106.html?style=mine#cutid1

$383,500.00 has been pledged to the Ron Paul Blimp project so far. So if everyone who pledged follows through, there is enough to rent the blimp for a month. Any extra money raised will likely go toward keeping the blimp in the air even longer.

The organizers are currently setting up a legal vehicle to accept donations for the blimp. They’ve hired an attorney, and artwork is also being prepared.

They currently need someone trustworthy, with experience managing large event budgets, to act as treasurer. This will be a paid position, and you’ll probably get to ride in the blimp. If you know anyone who has such experience, and would like the position, please ask them to contact Jerry Collette at http://www.ronpaulmax.com/i_will_help.html.

As long time readers of my blog know, I have a fetish healthy fascination for airships.

And, as is apparent by my frequent pimping, I’m a fanatic supporter of the Ron Paul presidential campaign.

Thus, you can imagine how happy I am by the most recent brainchild of Trevor Lyman:

Lyman, as some of you may know, orchestrated the November 5th “money bomb”, which raised $4.2 million dollars for Ron Paul on a single day. That event put Paul on the political map, and was instrumental in improving Paul’s odds from 200:1 to the beginning of his campaign, to 6:1 now. (According to sportsbook.com.)

Lyman is trying to raise $350,000 to rent a Skyship 600 airship for the month leading up to the New Hampshire primary. The plan is to fly the airship over major cities up and down the east coast. The airship could make an appearance at football bowl games, New Years Eve in New York City, and The Boston Tea Party fund raiser on December 16th.

So far, supporters have signed up to donate $272,000. A $25.00 or more donation buys you tickets in a raffle for flight time on the blimp. If you donate $5000, you’re guaranteed at least 18 hours of flight time.

So, if you’re a Ron Paul supporter, and you think this idea is as cool as I do, please donate.