| Obama: Hearts Saul Alinsky, evokes Prog Era, Chicago-stylin', puts down seniors, H8tes tradition, loses playbook, fakes it, betrays insecure arrogance, divides to conquer. Mismanagement: Congress searches for zenith of disgrace, union thugs organize, AGW sets the standard, critics urged to shut up and get lost, AARP goes rogue, SEIU rocks, P2P scorecard out, Andy Stern unrestrained. |
Obama dances with the devil who brung him ... The latest attempt to rush through health care reform legislation is yet another example of federal intervention on steroids we have experienced as of late. The continued march towards government control of every facet of our lives is totally understandable given the background and ideological tenets of President Obama. Very few of the media pundits have bothered to explore the teachings of Saul Alinsky, more affectionately known as the “father of modern American radicalism.” Alinsky was the original community organizer. His book, “Rules for Radicals” outlined the strategy for community organizing which had its roots in the city of Chicago. You see where this is going. The tribute at the beginning of “Rules for Radicals” leaves one with anything but a warm and fuzzy feeling: “From all our legends, mythology and history (and who is to know where mythology leaves off and history begins - or which is which), the first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom - Lucifer.” (yumasun.com)Bonus links:
• Summary of Saul Alinsky's 'Rules for Radicals'
• More Saul Alinsky stories: here
• 'Rules for Radicals' at amazon.com
In case you missed it: The Union News weekend
Sunday: We don't need no stinkin' Constitution
Saturday: ObamaCare hits us where we hurt
Alinsky's Rules backfire on Insiders ... But I have news for the late Saul Alinsky. Those tactics may have served well the extremists of the past in the short run. However, the ridicule of this campaign has been so over the top, so pervasive, so malignant and so obvious, it has backfired. The rules for radicals work well when radicals are not running things. But when the inmates take over the asylum, as they have in this country in the last six months, the old tactics of intimidation simply allow more people to see through the looking glass. (wnd.com)
Obama New Progs evoke 1930s, LatAm Marxists ... How can you not compare what the purple shirts are doing in this video to what the brownshirts were doing in the 1930s? Pro-government goons are pro-government goons - for now and all eternity. Don't denounce the comparison, Mr. Gibbs. Denounce the goons. As I mentioned, though, the better comparison is Nicaragua in the 1980s, when the Sandinista mobs attacked peaceful protestors with crowbars. The reason that's better is, as you might have seen in comments to my prior posts, many Democrats still think the Sandinista Marxists were justified in unleashing those mobs. Aside from the morality of all this, there's the practicality. Politically speaking, these town halls have been a disaster. That was obvious from the first one I attended a month ago in Toms River. The more people know about this plan, the less they like it. (blog.nj.com)
Obama brings Chicago-style politics to Hope and Change ... Union thugs beat up a protester, Randy Arthur, at Florida Democrat Congresswoman Kathy Castor's town hall meeting in Tampa on Thursday. Castor's union thugs also shut the doors to prevent the opposing opinions from being heard. Fifteen hundred people were there, but they would not let them in the front door. When the doors were finally opened, only about seventy-five people were allowed in. Meanwhile, by the time even those seventy-five were let in, the union and ACORN thugs had already been quietly ushered in through the back door, and had already taken seats that were reserved for them in the front. Castor herself then proceeded to leave, not taking any questions, claiming that it was because she "couldn't hear." Translation: she doesn't have answers, because she hasn't read the House bill. And in Missouri, over a thousand St. Louis Tea Party taxpayers showed up to attend the Russ Carnahan town hall meeting in South St. Louis. They too were locked out - while the Carnahan staff was sneaking members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in the side door marked "handicapped." Remember: Obama paid out at least $2,250,000 to the SEIU, the nation's largest labor union. And SEIU COPE-PAC spent $13,355,389 to get Obama elected President. SEIU paid for door-to-door canvassing for Obama, voter identification and registration, and phone banks. (americanthinker.com)
Obama, SEIU move against oppressive seniors ... Obama’s Hitler like use of SEIU to suppress freedom of speech at town meetings dealing with health care reform has spawned a new wave of internet photos. Pelosi’s outrageous comment about “swastikas” has fueled the comparison of the Obama’s administration to that of Hitler’s. Images like the “Joker knock-off” are comical but sadly ring true. It is a sad day in America when our President sends union thugs to beat up and manhandle our seniors who are using their Constitutional right to free speech. Obama and SEIU leave our elders alone. (examiner.com)
Obama-Dems: Traditional leftwing radicals ... Recent media coverage of Americans speaking up with their concerns about the proposed health care legislation finally removes any doubt that those on the hard Left side of the Democratic aisle hate anything that remotely resembles traditional America. When Cindy Sheehan and Medea Benjamin protested the Bush administration, they were heralded as brave Americans who loved their country enough to speak truth to power. They were treated to a level of favorable coverage like we have never seen – coverage normally reserved for Mother Teresa or Rosa Parks. But let 200, 300 hard-working, play-by-the-rules, taxpaying, law-abiding citizens voice their opinions about a government that has a deaf ear to the people and we hear words like "Nazis," "paid plants," "GOP operatives," "right-wing wackos" and worse spewing from the mouths of Democratic leadership in Congress. The ease in which they use such terms without any critical analysis by the press is very revealing. The Left is all for free speech when it tears down our nation. But let that speech turn to cries for less government and more personal accountability in D.C., and the attacks ensue. Whether it's an 80-year-old grandmother or a young person fresh out of college, he or she becomes public enemy No. 1 under the Obama/Pelosi administration. They are soon the target of censure straight out of the book, "Rules for Radicals." Saul Alinsky would be so proud of his little protégés: isolate and demean the opposition. (wnd.com)
Obama-Dem Kabuki Theater degenerates ... Obama told Democratic Senators just prior to their departure on Friday for the August recess that the Administration 'has their backs' and that if they are attacked for their views on socialized medicine they should attack back doubly hard. We have already seen at least some of what this strategy entails. Government-worker Union thugs of the SEIU showed up at a town hall meeting in Tampa, Florida to push citizens out of their seats and prevent other citizens from getting into the meeting area. An African-American who was handing out 'Don't Tread on Me' flags was attacked by another African-American wearing an SEIU shirt, necessitating the hospitalization and medical treatment of the man who was attacked. The victim and his attorney gave an interview on Fox News. During at least 2 townhall meetings the police and SWAT teams were called out to 'bring order to a volatile situation.' It is interesting that in both cases, the plan to call the cops was in place prior to the event itself, as if Democrats schemed to cause a scene that would supposedly make the protesters look bad. (examiner.com)
Attack of the Killer Tomatoes grips U.S. ... Even as Science magazine is hastily backing off on the media fraud of "global warming," Obama's Medi-Scare Campaign is using precisely the same fear tactics perfected by climate fraud peddlers to take over American medical care. The similarities are astonishing -- and for a very good reason: Both global frauding and Medi-Scare are pure stage-craft, made up by Hollywood mediots who are desperate to empower the Left, because that is the only thing that gives meaning to their empty lives. But neither climate fraud nor Medi-Scare do anything to fix the dire "emergency" they are trying to scare us about. There is no emergency: There is no global warming doom coming up, and there no crisis in American medicine. Remember that: There is no emergency. It's all completely made up, just like the Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. (americanthinker.com)
Look for the union label ... Politics is getting increasingly violent as Democrats desperately try to salvage their health care bill. Rep. Brian Baird, Washington Democrat, said last week that public protest against the government health care plan "is close to Brown Shirt tactics." For Mr. Baird to characterize his constituents as Nazi storm troops is distasteful, to say the least. Yet it is fully in line with the tone set by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who misleadingly decried protesters "carrying swastikas." Closer examination revealed that in every case, the symbol was being used as a warning against the arrogance of power of which Mrs. Pelosi has become emblematic. Democratic talking points characterize the spontaneous grass-roots opposition to the planned government takeover of the health care system as being organized by a shadowy cabal of lobbyists and insurance companies. However, the real storm troops are being deployed openly by organized labor in an attempt to squelch dissent. On Aug. 6, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney sent marching orders to his members to confront concerned citizens at town-hall forums. (washingtontimes.com)
Most arrogant President ever? ... In his speeches and press conferences, Obama does not hesitate to remind his audiences that "I am the president." This is the type of arrogance that allowed Hugo Chávez to recently declare himself “president for life” in Venezuela. That wouldn't happen in this country, would it? The appointment of czars and firing of the General Motors CEO are examples of presidential abuse of power. If Obama were to declare himself "president for life," would the current Senate and House of Representatives do anything to stop him? I sincerely doubt it. (mydesert.com)
Obama Divides to Conquer ... Dear readers, this has nothing whatsoever to do with democracy. No, it reminds me of socialist revolutions of old. Democrats have now officially introduced mob rule rather than democracy to America. And Obama, what does he do? Instead of listening to ‘the other side’ and taking their concerns serious, he has decided to react like his buddy Hugo Chavez. He simply told conservatives recently to shut up. “I don’t want the folks who created this mess to do a lot of talking,” the man formerly known as the Messiah said. “I want them to get out of the way so we can clean up the mess. I don’t mind cleaning up after them, but don’t do a lot of talking.” As Glenn Reynolds put it: Obama has become the first Thug-in-Chief in history. While union thugs are busy beating up conservative protesters, far left organizations like MoveOn.org are hiring professional protesters and gang members. A new (yet old) kind of political soldier, you could say. After last year’s elections, the American Ché Guevara and his buddies in Congress boasted they had a mandate. They could get away with anything, or so they said. Well, guess what? They were wrong. They overestimated the scope of their mandate as seldom before. Americans did not vote for the Democratic Party because they suddenly became liberals but because they were fed up with the Republican Party and with politics as usual; the politics of divide and conquer. (poligazette.com)
Meet the new Global Warming ... Democrats, bloodied over their attempt to force health care "reform" on Americans, are looking more unreasonable and hysterical by the day. This isn't healthy for the republic. Their increasing anxiety and fear of failure are typified in the words of the leader of their party, who wants Republicans to keep their mouths shut while he "fixes" health care. "I don't want the folks who created the mess to do a lot of talking," the president said Thursday at a political rally in Virginia. "I want them to get out of the way so we can clean up the mess." So much for the promises of bipartisan lawmaking. So much for open discussion. So much for understanding who really caused the "mess" in the first place. Like Al Gore claiming the debate about global warming is over, the White House simply wants to shut down dialogue over who controls more than one-seventh of the economy. (ibdeditorials.com)
Obama channels Nixon to critics: Get Lost ... Which is the real America that is cramming into town hall meetings during Congress’ recess? Upset citizens on the Right have turned out in incredible numbers. It has put the Left on the defensive and in counter-attack mode. Altercations and arrests have begun. President Obama publicly delivered a message to those who oppose his plan. At a Virginia campaign rally on Thursday, he pronounced, "I don't want the folks who created the mess to do a lot of talking. I want them just to get out of the way." In other words: “Unless you agree with me, shut up.” Obama’s message is sharply as odds with the Democrat National Committee’s ads that claim it’s the other side which is trying to silence others by using mob tactics. (humanevents.com)
Obama-Dem Town Halls a fake ... The Obama administration has cynically tried to hijack the Town Hall by transforming into a one way series of meetings, in which enthusiastic carefully chosen citizens voice their approval of his proposed policies. That is not an American Town Hall, it is a Soviet party meeting. In a Town Hall meeting, citizens question their elected representatives. At a party meeting, they give them their wholehearted approval. But it is a part of a pattern for the Obama administration, which works to put an All-American stamp on its un-American program. Obama began the process with a one hour ABC network special “Town Hall” with no Republican opposition allowed. Naturally enough the Obama Administration’s Director of Communications for the White House Office of Health Reform (a position that never existed before) is herself a former ABC news correspondent. Meanwhile to close the circle, ABC’s own new Senior Medical Editor was an Obama donor. Then the AARP, which had replaced its CEO with Barry Rand, a staunch Obama supporter, who had donated over 10,000 dollars to Obama, replacing Bill Novelli, who as a former McCain donor would have been considered unreliable. Unsurprisingly the AARP leadership, beginning with Barry Rand, came out for ObamaCare. By contrast many of the AARP’s core membership were unhappy with the organization’s sellout. (canadafreepress.com)Related video: AARP to members: Shut Up
AARP throws its members under the bus ... AARP is no longer an advocate for seniors’ benefits and wellness. In order to maintain their so-called "non-profit" status they began to make inordinately large contributions to political causes - liberal Democrat political causes and candidates. In addition to their left wing type generosity, they did one particular thing that infuriated me and caused me to cancel my membership with them a few years ago when they nominated the socio-communist Harry Belafonte as their “Man of the Year.” When I protested this anti-American action I was told in no uncertain terms that the honor bestowed on this traitor who sided with Hugo Chávez of Venezuela in calling President George Bush “another Hitler” would not be rescinded. My resignation was submitted immediately on receipt of their notification to me. (canadafreepress.com)
Shame on racist SEIU thugs ... An angry mob attacked a black man outside a town hall meeting on healthcare in St. Louis last Thursday. The group was “invited” to the meeting by U.S. Representative Russ Carnahan (Dem., Mo.), who had a reserved seating section for them inside the hall, while security guards posted outside refused entry to members of the Tea Party Coalition. Kenneth Gladney was exercising his First Amendment rights outside the hall, by handing out flyers with the revolutionary “Don’t Tread on Me” flag on the cover. Mr.Gladney also happens to be a black man. He was assaulted by a bunch of thugs from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), proudly wearing their union shirts with the SEIU logo. Most of the union thugs appeared to be white men. (examiner.com)
P2P: Union bigs #1 ... Organized labor gave more money to congressional campaigns than any other interest group at a time when overhauling health care and easing the ability of unions to organize sit atop Congress’ agenda. Union political action committees shelled out $11 million to lawmakers during the first six months of this year. Ranking second were health care interests, which gave $9.5 million from Jan. 1 through June 30, according to a CQ MoneyLine analysis of the latest filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). (cqpolitics.co)
Meet Andy Stern, unrestrained ... Obama’s comments about the end of employer based health insurance was at an SEIU meeting. That of course was no coincidence. The SEIU is America’s biggest health care union and its most radical union as well. The SEIU left behind the AFL-CIO. They’re considered extremist even by union standards. And they’re considered thuggish. How thuggish? So thuggish that their violence was actually condemned by the President of the AFL-CIO. After the violence at the Detroit Labor Notes conference last year, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said, 'There is no justification—none—for the violent attack orchestrated by SEIU at the Labor Notes conference.' AFL-CIO is no shrinking violet union. It has a storied history of mobsters, ugly mugs and thugs. And to boot, John Sweeney himself was a former SEIU President who had tried to moderate the extreme path on which Andy Stern had taken the SEIU. That was because the SEIU was not simply thuggish and corrupt toward its members and businesses. It was that of course, but it was also remorselessly aggressive toward other unions as well. Stern had led the SEIU walkout of the AFL-CIO, finding it not aggressive enough for his taste. The SEIU’s own feuds with UNITE and CNA, the California Nurses Union. The CNA is itself no shrinking violet, a solidly left wing organization with a taste for election tampering. The SEIU however had become the dominant American health care union by focusing its unionizing further down the ladder, and then working their way up to the nurses. While the CNA fought for an individual nurses union, the CEIU wanted one union to rule them all. The resulting battle saw regular SEIU violence, so much so that CNA actually applied for a restraining order against Andy Stern and SEIU union members, to 'cease and desist the stalking of, use of violence against, and harassment of officers, directors, and staff of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee.' Under the restraining order, 'SEIU and Stern are prohibited from stalking, threatening, or following CNA/NNOC leaders staff at work, in hospitals, clinics, and offices, at their homes. They are also barred from following their cars or harassing them with mail or phone calls… The order was prompted by a campaign of stalking and harassment by Stern’s SEIU over the past week in which SEIU teams have targeted CNA/NNOC leaders in nursing stations, harassed them at home, and followed cars. (webcommentary.com)
