Not that it really matters anymore, but I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that Ron Paul has endorsed the John Birch Society:
APPLETON, WIS. — April 4, 2008 — Congressman Ron Paul has endorsed The John Birch Society in a statement received from his office this week. His statement also congratulates the Society on being “a great patriotic organization” now in its 50th year.
John McManus, president of JBS, responded, “We graciously accept Dr. Paul’s endorsement. He continues to demonstrate what an elected official should be doing … obeying the Constitution. We thank him for his continuous commitment to protect the freedoms of all Americans. There’s a reason why he consistently rates toward the top of the Freedom Index, our Congressional scorecard rating legislators’ votes published twice a year in The New American magazine.”
Dr. Paul stated, “The John Birch Society is a great patriotic organization featuring an educational program solidly based on constitutional principles. I congratulate the Society in this, its 50th year. I wish them continued success and endorse their untiring efforts to foster ‘less government, more responsibility … and with God’s help … a better world.’”
And just in case you’re wondering what the John Birch Society is:
The John Birch Society was established in Indianapolis, Indiana on December 9, 1958 by a group of twelve “patriotic and public-spirited” men led by Robert Welch, Jr., a retired candy manufacturer from Belmont, Massachusetts. A noted founding member was Fred Koch, founder of Koch Industries, one of the largest private corporations in America. A transcript of Welch’s two-day presentation at the founding meeting was published as The Blue Book of the John Birch Society and became a cornerstone of its beliefs, with each new JBS member receiving a copy. [4]
“According to Welch,” writes the leftist watchdog group Political Research Associates, “both the U.S. and Soviet governments are controlled by the same furtive conspiratorial cabal of internationalists, greedy bankers, and corrupt politicians. If left unexposed, the traitors inside the U.S. government would betray the country’s sovereignty to the United Nations for a collectivist New World Order managed by a ‘one-world socialist government.’
Welch only saw “collectivism” as the main threat to Western Civilization, and far-left liberals as “secret Communist traitors” who provide the cover for the gradual process of collectivism, with the ultimate goal of replacing the nations of western civilization with one-world socialist government. “There are many stages of welfarism, socialism, and collectivism in general,” he wrote, “but Communism is the ultimate state of them all, and they all lead inevitably in that direction.” [5]
The John Birch Society’s objective has been to fight Communism and totalitarianism using some of Communism’s own techniques–organization of front groups, infiltration of other groups, and letter-writing campaigns. They have organized grassroots chapters in every state and are the only Americanist organization to have full-time paid field staff assisting those chapters. Their activities include distribution of literature, pamphlets, magazines, videos and other educational material while sponsoring a Speaker’s Bureau and encouraging members to conduct letter-writing campaigns especially to elected officials.
One of the first public activities of the JBS was a “Get US Out!” (of membership in the UN) campaign, which claimed in 1959 that the “Real nature of [the] UN is to build a One World Government.” In 1960, Welch advised JBS members to “join your local PTA at the beginning of the school year, get your conservative friends to do likewise, and go to work to take it over.”
Conspiracy theories and one-world government fears. I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised.
http://www.jbs.org
As you know from my previous posts, I am always eager to openly discuss issues with those who have views divergent from my own. Whether one is talking with a John Birch Society member or a Green Party socialist, we Americans must practice our core values where each idea is allowed into the public square, then each idea is judged upon its own merits.
There is no doubt that America has marched toward socialism, beginning with a giant leap made by FDR’s “New Deal.” A good book on the New Deal is, American Made, by Nick Taylor.
Many of our citizens who revile socialism, were helped in a major way by government jobs created because of New Deal policies. Today, many still owe their livelihoods to government employment programs.
What I glean from the Birchers and others who warn of One World Government, is that we must be cautious, not to allow incremental steps toward socialist policies, to cumulatively destroy our liberty.
For example, once government controls health care, government will soon tell the citizens through new laws, all sorts of behaviors that must be limited or banned, under the auspices of cost containment.
Having the government tell a fat-assed smoker to quit smoking and exercise is good advice, and good for the citizen, but it is not the job of government; at least not yet, anyway.
The Paulistinians and Ron Paul are rightfully concerned about the erosion of our liberty and the ever growing reach of government. Those who support socialist programs, should take a note of caution from the Birchers, and others and include limits to the socialist programs that they advocate, so that our citizens’ might still benefit from collective programs, yet retain our God given freedom.
The problem that remains is that some socialists really just want government control, not for the public good, but to forward their other political agendas. A few on the Right, would have America become like some Third World countries, with beggars in the streets and no social “safety-net” for those who fall on hard times. Clearly, by working together in a spirit of civility, we can achieve solutions that borrow from the best ideas from sometimes opposed political movements, to provide good governance and preserve the freedom of our citizens.
Yeah, yeah, “everybody knows” the JBS is all wackos, conspiracy nuts, and racists.
Hmmm … come to think of it, that’s the same smears that some people have been trying, for a few months now, to make sure “everybody knows” about Ron Paul as well.
Do you really think that any of his supporters are too obtuse to spot the very same smear campaign when it’s done to someone else?
I don’t see what the big deal is. Even if you didn’t believe what they did, don’t you agree it’s good to have people who keep an eye out for such things? Especially during these times?
No hit piece is too low for you huh Doug?
Defenders of the Constitution are to be savaged.
This has been clear all along.
We don’t even listen to this tripe anymore.
We even have school programs to brainwash kids against the USA and our form of government (Goals 2000, IBO, etc)
I guess that’s the chi-chi thing to do these days. Promote marxism.
It has been clear to me for a long time that Ron Paul is not a libertarian at all but a Paleo-Conservative. Birchers are a bunch of nutters and it does not surprised me Paulians & Paul support them.