Reprinted from www.dailykos.com by Unknown
We now have INSIDER proof that today's Tea & Libertarian Parties are just a repackaging of the John Birch Society. Here's a must read book written by Claire Connor (one brave woman I might add) that connects the dots from 1934 to the present of right wing extremism:
Wrapped in the Flag: A Personal History of America's Radical Right
I learned of this book from a tweet connecting to this The Nation article:
Growing Up in the John Birch Society
Quite frankly, the article isn't that well-written, however, it did inspire me to look into the book.
This is where it gets REALLY interesting.
The book is listed with Amazon.com and, based on the comments, is a must read for anyone wanting to better understand both the Tea Party and todays so-called Libertarian movement.
However, when I went to the Amazon link, the customer reviews are what really grabbed my attention. (click on the "5 Star link on the left to view the entire text of each review)
Apparently, the author, Claire Connor, is the first to write an insider account of being raised by John Birch Society devotees. Her father was a national JBS operative.
Many of the commenters are also recovering adult children raised within the JBS culture and they clearly state and warn us that todays Tea & Libertarian Parties resemble the John Birch Society teachings they were bullied as children to believe.
Here's what they have to say. I searched the customer reviews for "Tea Party" and found 7 references. The following are just these excerpts:
(from a recovering adult child of JBS parents)The tea party extremists are the modern shoots of the JBS, and, in fact, some of the big private money that fueled the early JBS now underwrites the fiery extremism of the modern tea party. Fred Koch - father of David and Charles - was a founding member and funder of the JBS. Like the JBS, the tea party and many parts of the libertarian movement there is a nasty authoritarian streak running right up the spine of the modern right wing movement. It is a rigid authoritarian rule that can be scaled up from the family, to a business or school, projected further to a political party (as it has) and onward to an entire nation, as is happening.
(from another recovering adult child of JBS parents)There are many reasons, after reading the book, to see very similar ugliness in the Tea Party of today. Some of the same Birch members are fanning their flames of utter fear of some conspiratorial world domination by communists, Islam and whatever else is the fear of the day.
From her conservative upbringing to her current political views, the story she tells is riveting and helped me to understand today's Tea Party movement and the influence the John Birch Society had on our society. I highly recommend Wrapped In The Flag to anyone who is interested in the real motivations behind today's extreme right wing conservatives.
The author skillfully connected the dots starting back with the American Liberty League despising the efforts of FDR, through the Birchers and Posse Comitatus and the connections to the ultra-scary Koch Brothers' father, Fred. ..... When the Republicans maintained radio silence in the days immediately following Obama's election in '08, an updated version of the JBS was conceived and born - the Tea Party.Just in case the reviews are not convincing enough to connect JBS with the Tea Party, here's an excerpt from the Preface, page x, that helps explain how think tanks and foundations have taken over legislators:
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, while the politicians and pundits declared the Birchers dead and buried, the moneyed Birch leadership went to Plan Bredirecting their cash and their influence into THINK TANKS and FOUNDATIONS.
Fred Koch, on of the original Birch founding members..
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