Teabaggers: More radical and extreme than John Birch society

[Neecy]

Granted, they're similar in many important ways:

The John Birch Society is a radical right-wing,Americentric political advocacy group that supports anti-communism, limited government, and personal freedom. It has been described as "ultraconservative", "far right", and "extremist".

...The society says it is anti-totalitarian, particularly anti-socialist and anti-communist. It seeks to limit the powers of government and defends the original intention of the U.S. Constitution, based on Judeo-Christian principles. It opposes collectivism, including wealth redistribution, economic interventionism, socialism, communism, and fascism. In a 1983 edition of Crossfire, Congressman Larry McDonald (D-Georgia), then its newly appointed president, characterized the society as belonging to the Old Right rather than the New Right (he defined New Right as "Viguerie and post-Viguerie").

The society opposed aspects of the civil rights movement in the 1960s because of its concerns that the movement had communists in important positions. The society opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, saying it was in violation of the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and overstepped the rights of individual states to enact laws regarding civil rights. The society is against "one world government", and has an immigration reduction view on immigration reform. It opposes the United Nations, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), and other free trade agreements. The society argues that there is a devaluing of the U.S. Constitution in favor of political and economic globalization, and that this trend is not an accident. It cites David Rockefeller's 2002 autobiography Memoirs, in which he wrote, "Some even believe we are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my family and me as 'internationalists' and of conspiring with others around the world to build a more integrated global political and economic structure—one world, if you will. If that's the charge, I stand guilty, and I am proud of it."

The Southern Poverty Law Center, an advocacy group which monitors various political groups, lists the society as a "Patriot' Group". It defines such a group as follows: "Generally, Patriot groups define themselves as opposed to the 'New World Order' or advocate or adhere to extreme antigovernment doctrines".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Birch_Society

Pretty bad, isn't it? But wait! Even the John Birch society isn't as bad as the TeaFreaks!

Antisemitic, racist, anti-Mormon, anti-Masonic, and religious groups criticized the group's acceptance of Jews, non-whites, Masons, and Mormons.

These people need to be presented to the American public not as 'concerned citizens' but as more extreme, more violent and more radical than the John Birch Society.

[Raven]

1. I grew up with the John Birch Society all around me. I don't remember

the threats of violence.

[kestrel91316]

2. Why does everybody hate the MASONS??? My great-grandfather

was a Mason, and I inherited his Masonic cufflinks, which are beautiful.

What horrible things was he doing with them in Franklin, NE in the teens and twenties, lol?????? Plotting to overthrow the government?

[my2sense]

3. They also need to be identified as REPUBLICANS

It seems the republicans have been careful to try and keep some disassociation.

The reasonable folks in America need to know the Tea Baggers are spawns of the Republicans. They need to own the monsters they've created.

[ashling]

4. Teabaggers, John Birch, KKK, No-Nothings ... all of the same

shit stained self righteous anti-immigrant xenophobic paranoia that has made this country what it is today...God help us.

When I think of the tea party I think of Bill the Butcher from Martin Scorsese's the Gangs of New York

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRKx7hd3X9k&feature=related

:cry:

[pampango]

5. "It was empowered by popular fears that the country was being overwhelmed by German and Irish

Catholic immigrants." - Change "German and Irish Catholics" to "Mexican" and the Know Nothings of the 1840's and 1850's morph into the Teabaggers of the 21st century. Apparently "self righteous anti-immigrant xenophobic paranoia" never dies, though I'm sure the baggers will say, "It is different this time. :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Know_Nothing

[ashling]

7. Exactly - Americas common memory is always misremembered

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aY2tbeP_K1M&feature=related

[Ganja Ninja]

6. Ever notice how the GOP is always renaming itself?

Republicans, Birchers, Neo-Cons, Conservative Libertarians, Minutemen, Teabaggers, Birthers, KKK, Independent Conservatives.

[pampango]

8. Odd set of Birch beliefs: anti-civil rights, anti-socialism, anti-UN, but also anti-NAFTA (and

other free trade agreements), anti-globalization, and anti-immigration.

Maybe the world has changed so much since the John Birch society was created in 1958 (the Civil Rights movement, economic and political globalization, increased immigration after 1965, etc.) that it has had a hard time keeping up. Now its policy positions come across as still largely far right, but with a smattering of ideas that are shared by some on the left.

I used to hear a lot about the John Birch society but nothing lately. I got a kick out of this at the wiki link. Change a couple of words and it almost sounds like a DU post.

""..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." - The Blue Book of the John Birch Society (Change "Soviet" to "Chinese" and "socialist government" to capitalist government". The "conspiratorial cabal of internationalists, greedy bankers, and corrupt politicians" and "the traitors inside the U.S. government would betray the country's sovereignty" would remain the same.) :)

Another interesting fact (at least to yours truly) is that they are anti-war.

"(T)he UN's role in the Gulf War and President George H. W. Bush's call for a 'New World Order' appeared to many society members to validate their claims about a "One World Government" conspiracy.

The society continues to press for an end to U.S. membership in the United Nations. As evidence of the effectiveness of JBS efforts, the society points to the Utah State Legislature's failed resolution calling for U.S. withdrawal, as well as the actions of several other states where the Society's membership has been active. The society repeatedly opposed overseas war-making, although it is strongly supportive of the American military. It has issued calls to "Bring Our Troops Home" in every conflict since its founding, including Vietnam. The society also has a national speakers' committee called American Opinion Speakers Bureau (AOSB) and an anti-tax committee called TRIM (Tax Reform Immediately)."

[struggle4progress]

9. John Birch Society Sponsoring CPAC (Dec 09)

... The John Birch Society .... began exercising power during the 1964 Goldwater campaign, as their campaigns vs Supreme Court justices and against the perils of fluoridated water .... The John Birch Society announces it is cosponsoring the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) 2010, to be held in Washington DC, Feb. 18-20 .... http://www.oliverwillis.com/2009/12/16/john-birch-society-sponsoring-cpac/

[ernie1241]

10. JBS and Civil Rights Movement

The JBS did not oppose the civil rights movement (as you claim) just because of "its concerns that the movement had communists in important positions" nor because of its concerns regarding violations of the 10th Amendment or "states' rights".

It opposed the entire civil rights movement, all civil rights legislation, all civil rights organizations, and all national civil rights leaders because it allied itself with segregationists who believed in the inferiority of African-Americans.

That is why the JBS...

***employed racists and segregationists as speakers under the auspices of its Speakers Bureau (such as Selma AL Sheriff Jim Clark and Rev. Delmar Dennis)

***supported Klan-favored life-long racist politicians such as Gov. Ross Barnett (MS), Gov. George Wallace (AL) and Sen. James O. Eastland (MS)

***welcomed white supremacists into its ranks as members, writers, and speakers (such as White Citizens Councils officials Medford Evans, Louis Hollis, W. J. Simmons)

***was largely responsible for the American Independent Party candidacy of Governor George Wallace of AL

***adopted and circulated the arguments of white supremacist organizations (such as claiming that the civil rights movement was created, controlled and dominated by communists, and referring to Highlander Folk School as a "Communist training school")

***welcomed segregationists as JBS National Council members (such as T. Coleman Andrews (VA), Tom Anderson (TN), and A.G. Heinsohn Jr. (TN)

Only people who are profoundly naive or ignorant about the JBS could ever claim that the JBS opposed the civil rights movement for principled reasons.

[lunasun]

11. My mother was a big J BS er

True their big thing with civil rights was MLK was a communist (How many 8x10 glossy pics did she buy of MLK at a communist party meeting I don't know but they were all over the house)

BUT I remember that there was plenty of "Negros are inferior to Whites" literature too.

They also put a lot of $$ into defeating movements in African countries that were becoming independant of Europe(colony rule) and moving to black leadership.
I remember Rhodesia in particular which is now Zimbabwe and Kenya too...those poor negros were all communist 'dupes' of course -whether here or there.... ( but so was Eisenhower according to them)

When you see the red green black flags of Africa free of colony rule like Kenya remember the meaning:
GREEN>
The color of land of Africa
BLACK>
Color of the African race
RED>>
Blood shed by Africans to gain back the homeland
Or at least that was how it was explained to me when I was in Africa

As for JBS being an anti war group ,I am not sure if my mothers Vietnam era bumper stickers that read - BOMB WIN AND GET OUT!- were from them or some other lunatic fringe group she espoused. I guess that statement is sorta anti-long involvement war at least like "shock & awe" mission accomplished was...they are all haters and I am sure some teabaggers are jBSers as they still exist>JBS.ORG
ARE teabaggers anti-Mormon anti-Romney? I think they will take anyone they can get just like JBS