Glenn Beck's Influence on the angry anti-health Care Reform Protesters- who appear to believe whatever Beck or other anti-Obama Media Personalities say.They are fueling anger , suspicion and fear through misinformation, lies and propaganda to further their own personal or Republican party or Conservative agenda
MSNBC, New Hampshire Obama Town Hall Meeting -Armed Protester
Glenn Beck's legions head to the town halls by Alex Koppelman at Salon.com, August 13, 2009
...Beck’s name doesn’t usually come up that explicitly in the town halls that have gotten so much attention recently. But the Fox News host is, in a sense, the voice of the protests. The spirit of impending, apocalyptic conflict and deep civilizational peril that pervades his show certainly animates the protests, for one thing. Plus, he's even had a hand, albeit somewhat indirectly, in organizing the people who are showing up at community centers and schools all over the country.
Back in March, Beck launched what he called the “9-12 Project.” Meant to recall the spirit of the country right after the attacks of September 11, the project has nine “principles” and twelve “values,” which mainly run along the lines of “America is good.” (Literally.) The episode in which he announced the idea is probably the most famous of the show’s whole run. It’s the one where Beck repeatedly appears to choke up and cry, and declares, “They don’t surround us. We surround them.”
...It’s clear that the hyperbolic fears voiced by town hall protesters borrow a page out of Beck’s book as well. The woman who shouted at Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Pa., “I don’t want this country turning into Russia,” is hardly the only person to express such a concern. And Beck is arguably the pioneer of the “Obama is a [insert type of totalitarian here]” genre. He’s repeatedly warned that insufficient vigilance will mean a dictator in the White House.
In addition to helping to organize attendance for congressional events, the 9-12ers seem especially interested in preparing for the day when they lose the political battle and have to fight a real one. The Asheville, N.C. chapter is learning Krav Maga, a martial art developed for the Israeli Defense Forces. In Rochester, N.Y., there’s a workshop on how to make 72-hour survival kits.
Of course, there’s no way for those of us who don’t think Obama is the risen-again Hitler to convince these people otherwise. Nor is there any way to tell them that whatever disasters are ahead, it’s probably not helping to have one side quibbling over healthcare co-ops versus public buy-in options while the other is almost literally preparing for war.
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Adele M. Stan following up the recent article on the connections between the anti-health care reform crowds and organizations such as Grassfire and Resist .Net now informs us of the even more strident and militant organization "restoretherepublic.org". On their website it is argued that an armed militia made up of average Americans is needed to take action when the government in power becomes tyrannical or no longer represents the ideals or founding principles of the nation.
Meanwhile there are those in the Republican Party and the alarmist in the media who are deliberately fueling anger, anxiety, suspicion and distrust that the Obama administration is advancing an agenda which runs counter to traditional American values and its Constitution and its Bill of Rights. Insurrection is therefore a very real possibility as Glenn Beck and others appear to be advocating. By calling Obama a tyrant and comparing him to Hitler while suggesting in a tearful plea that Obama is destroying America from the inside then what should these extremists conclude?
"Gun-Nut Outside Obama Townhall Linked to GOP 'Stop ObamaCare' Effort" By Adele M. Stan, AlterNet. August 12, 2009.
Strapped with a loaded gun, William Kostric carried a message from the GOP's "break Obama" campaign.
...His message was sponsored with the tacit approval of a social networking site promoted by a well-connected Republican public-relations firm.
...At the bottom of Kostric's sign, viewers were informed that the message was "brought to you by restoretherepublic.org."
Visit the site of Restore the Republic, and you will find a wealth of information on some of the far right's favorite conspiracy theories: the Bilderberg conspiracy, the Tri-Lateral Commission, the New World Order and "FEMA internment camps." The site is a draw for anti-government gun enthusiasts and survivalists.
While Kostric and his "freedom movement" compatriots hover at the fringe of America society, they are not without usefulness to the Republican Party.
...According to the Restore the Republic Web site, the organization was founded in 2007 by the late Aaron Russo as a follow-up to his film, America: Freedom to Fascism, a documentary that contends that the U.S income tax is illegal because the 16th amendment was never ratified by the states.
Russo ran, unsuccessfully, in Nevada's 1998 Republican gubernatorial primary, and endorsed Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul in his 2008 presidential bid...
Like the denizens of Restore the Republic, Russo opposed the not just the Federal Reserve and the Internal Revenue Service, but the captains of industry who built the U.S. banking system.
How ironic, then, that the so-called freedom movement represented by Restore the Republic has placed itself in the service of the nation's corporations as it seeks to derail health-care reform.
For instance here is an example of the sort of articles to be found at Restore The Republic in which the author argues in favor of an armed militia which is made up of ordinary Americans who are forced by circumstances to stand up and defend the Republic from thos who wish to undermine it.
Restore The Republic.org
Original Militia of 1875
Archive for the ‘Militia’ Category
Further Down That Path
June 7, 2009 | 2nd Amendment, Constitution, Judicial, Militia
They were not members of a National Guard, or some other pretend unit that the courts would refer to in order to limit the ability of the People to arm themselves so that they might have the resources to block a tyrannical state. Yes, whether you believe it or not, the reason behind the Militia was to protect against not only lawlessness, but also an abusive government. And whether you believe it or not, we long ago proved that this government should have been torn apart, and reconstructed in its intended image.
...We are engaged in a great war for the minds of the people of this nation. On the one hand there are those in government, subversive groups such as The Brady Campaign to prevent gun violence, its allies in the media, and national corporations who work tirelessly in order that they might wrest power from the People. On the other there are the wary who see what conspiracies have been laid to promote such an agenda. It is to the benefit of the former group to deceive the witless tools so that their ignorance might be used to trivialize those who dissent
...The agenda to make the people toothless began when the federal government destroyed the military arm of the People, and created the National Guard, whose officers are not appointed by the states, and therefore do not meet constitutional muster. Then slowly, but surely, the media began to demonize the word militia so that the simple minded who are seduced by the power of the press believe that the rightful organization is some sort of racist clan, and now, as recently labeled, a terrorist threat.
also see for instance article on Ammunition shortage as seen as part of the Obama conspiracy as a question of a deliberate conspiracy so those who legitimately in their view wish to defend America will not have enough weapons or ammunition to fight the Obama administration :
Ammunition Scarcity
May 22, 2009 | 2nd Amendment at Restore The republic
Gene Lyons argues that those who are spreading misinformation about the health care reform bills have managed to hit upon issues about which many Americans are concerned for these issues have very real consequences dealing with life and death, abortion, euthanasia, end of life concerns, their health and access to medical treatments . They have been riled up and moved on an emotional level in which they fear governments over-reach in these very real and very personal matters.
"Lunacy goes mainstream:Conservatives may be acting crazy, but by yelling louder than anyone else, they're making sure they are heard" By Gene Lyons Salon.com, August 13, 2009
...On TV, conflict builds ratings. "Balance" often means equating reasonable views with fantastical lies. Ordinary viewers too often can't tell the difference. Short of an opportunity to chronicle the exploits of the risen Michael Jackson, that's not going to stop.
As Bob Somerby has documented relentlessly at the Daily Howler, the 2000 presidential election was probably decided by the falsehood that Al Gore claimed he invented the Internet; the 2004 contest, by the "Swift Boat" smear against Democratic nominee John Kerry. Time was when journalists and public figures that habitually misrepresented facts were relegated to the fringes. But that time's gone, and it ain't coming back.
Meanwhile, an entire industry devoted to inventing calumnies against Democrats has flourished, while liberal and opinion leaders have gazed thoughtfully into the ambient air. Ironically, given the current rhetoric about Obama the Nazi, its themes have always been broadly fascist, depicting liberal Democrats as the Enemy Within.
Writing about Ann Coulter's "Slander," I once noted that "the 'liberal' sins [she] caricatures -- atheism, cosmopolitanism, sexual license, moral relativism, communism, disloyalty and treason -- are basically identical to the crimes of the Jews as Hitler saw them."
Which brings us back to Palin, empress of the Arctic. In her characteristically fatuous, self-involved way, Alaska's former governor has uttered something so cosmically stupid only true believers could possibly credit her.
"The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama's 'death panel' so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their 'level of productivity in society,' whether they are worthy of health care," the former Republican vice-presidential nominee wrote on Facebook. "Such a system is downright evil."
In consequence, millions of Americans do fear that "Obamacare" means euthanizing geezers and handicapped children like stray dogs. Almost needless to say, that fear is based upon a gross and palpable lie, although not of Palin's invention. It appears to be the brainchild of one Betsy McCaughey, the former lieutenant governor of New York and a propagandist for the conservative Hudson Institute. On a July radio program, she claimed that "Congress would make it mandatory -- absolutely require -- that every five years people in Medicare have a required counseling session that will tell them how to end their life sooner."
The fraudulent claim quickly went viral on the Internet. Palin, gullible soul that she is, appears to have swallowed it whole.
But here's the difference: Unlike previous right-wing hoaxes -- the Clinton "death lists," the "Swift Boat" controversy, Obama's birth certificate, etc. -- this hits people where they live. Quite like the Terri Schiavo episode, which Republicans also mistook for a winning issue, this is not about abstract ideology. It's about the most intimate and solemn decisions we all must make. People think about such things harder than about politics, and they bitterly resent being lied to.
Peter Hoekstra at the conservative Washington Times seems to be beginning to lay the ground work for defeating and possibly ousting the Obama administration. If the people in general lose all confidence in their president and his administration what provisions are there for replacing a lame duck presidency after only eight or so months of being in power. In a parliamentary system as we have in Canada or like that in Great Britain a prime minister can be defeated by a "no confidence vote "in parliament. At that point a new election is called for and so the electorate then decides whether or not to keep the same government or not.
"HOEKSTRA: 'Ready! Fire! Aim!' no way to govern" By Peter Hoekstra , Washington Times, August 13, 2009
We have seen the appointment of more than 30 policy "czars," a clear admission that government isn't working. Although this "Ready! Fire! Aim!" approach to running our country initially produced nice sounding ideas and positive press, the president's lack of planning and focus have begun to catch up with him -- and us. This administration is reaching a critical point: it is in danger of losing the confidence of the American people in its ability to govern.
and then defends the mob mentality at Town Hall Meetings as an expression of the majority of Americans though much of this movement was begun with Big money from the Haelth care Industry and other right-wing anti-Obama organizations who feed their followers with "talking Points " and tactics for shutting down these meetings.
The Obama administration and Democrat congressional leaders are increasingly out of touch with the American people and their growing opposition to the president's policies. It is truly outrageous that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer have called protests against the president's health care proposal un-American. Democrats should listen to their constituents, not condemn them for using our democratic system to express their concerns to their elected representatives.
Mr. Obama, the American people need you to govern. The campaign is over. It is time to start governing, or you will lose the support of the American people.
The Tea Party gangs and the Town Hall Meetings Mobs include a growing number of Americans who have become angry and fearful of the Obama administration in large part due to the misinformation, lies, alarmism and propaganda by various self-serving lobbyists working for large corporations and for radical right-wing organizations who want to at the least make the Obama administration unable to function adequately in order to achieve its objectives. So far it appears to be working as Obama back-tracks and compromises on various policies which he had campaigned on. Once Obama is to a great extent neutralized will these militant groups and their Republican Party and Media enablers proceed to the next step of trying to get Obama ousted legally ie impeachment or stage a coup d'etat based on the now infamous Honduran model.
"7 Ways We Can Fight Back Against the Rising Fascist Threat" By Sara Robinson, Campaign for America's Future. Via AlterNet August 13, 2009.
Why the right-wing extremism must be stopped in its tracks or else we face the threat of outright violence and goon rule.
...How do we turn back? A few basic principles:
First: The teabaggers must not win this one. Back in elementary school, most of us learned that when a bully learns that intimidation and threats work, he'll will keep doing more of it. In fact, the longer he goes without comeuppance, the bolder and badder he becomes, and the harder it is to make him stop. Every success teaches him something new about how to use terror for maximum effect and tempts him to push the envelope and see what else he can get away with. Do nothing, and he'll soon take over the whole playground.
And it happens like this for bullies in groups, too. Living in a fascist regime is just living in a town dominated by the Mob, a street gang, the KKK, or a corrupt sheriff.
It only takes a small handful of thugs to terrorize people into giving up their civil rights, abandoning democracy and doing what they're told, just so they can keep their jobs, windows and families intact.
and ends with the observation that this is just the first in a long line of battles to come and the Right-wing is in this for the long haul and for eventually winning the war against Obama, Democrats,liberals and progressives.
Finally: Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty. Even if we succeed this time, let's not kid ourselves that this is over. The conservatives are investing a lot of money and effort to build a mass movement that is explicitly aimed at destroying a Democratic government -- and if we learned anything from the Clinton years, it's that they're not going to let up for a second as long as the Democrats are in control.
This is our new reality -- and it comes straight out of Hitler's playbook (check out Chapter 6 of Mein Kampf). Their intention is to keep the outrage junkies high by giving them a never-ending supply of new, made-up reasons to act out.
When the birth certificate fracas cools, they're standing by with "death panels." When that one's run its course, there will be something else -- over and over, every few weeks, for as long as the Dems rule.
Which means that even if we win this round, we can't stand down. We're going to be pushing back against these bullies, over and over, for the next three to seven years.
There are only two outcomes here. Either we get very good at spotting and stopping these attempts at a brownshirt takeover the minute they crop up; or they're going to get very good at public intimidation and keep ratcheting it up further toward outright violence and goon rule.
That's how it's going to be for the rest of this administration. The sooner we resign ourselves to the zero-sum nature of this fight, the sooner we can get on with getting good at it.
also see: Townhall Thugs Vandalize Progressive Bloggers Car
By: KellyCDenver firedoglake.com, August 10, 2009
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