Hah, Gladwell knows his audience! I just read Birchers: How the John Birch Society Radicalized the American Right. I've been thinking SO much about democracy lately...like a lot.
I was only eight years old in 1962 when my mother was the parlimentarian for the local PTA chapter at San Rafael Elementary School in Pasadena, California. A few years later she described to me the attempted takeover of her PTA chapter by strangers who just showed up en masse one night. As I recall the story, the attempted take over lasted over the course of several meetings, but after the first meeting I remember her spending hours pouring over this little book called Robert's Rules of Order (a mysterious text I understood not at all) to arm herself against the insurgents. My mom was very smart and quietly tough, and I was left with the impression that her wielding of Robert's Rules of Order helped to carry the day and end the attempt. I don't recall the John Birch Society coming up in my mom's telling of the story, but now it's obvious that's where this story started. I always found this story to be odd and a little myterious, as in, what the heck was that all about? Now I know! Thanks
Something else that hurt the PTA was the move from mostly two-parent, single-income households to mostly either dual-income households or single-parent households. Parents simply have less time to participate in the PTA, even if they wanted to.
It's not fair that I say this, but these reports need to be read by Malcolm. These are our fire-side chats. Without the singular voice of FDR narrating, they are not the same.
The Mormon church was HEAVILY influenced by the John Birch Society. Ezra Taft Benson was a key leader of the church during the 1960’s-1980’s and was a close confident of Robert Welch. Through Benson’s advocacy, the LDS church membership collectively became a predominantly right wing group, whereas in the century preceding him the membership was more evenly spread across the political spectrum.
Agree with comment about JS and BY. BY was a despicable man. In the early/mid 20th century the membership of the church was more diverse politically than it now is. For example, UT had highest percentage of state vote for FDR in 1932 election (because so many were so poor and needed government assistance). It was because of Ezra (and to a lesser extent J.Reuben Clark) who converted the church membership to almost universally swing to the hard right politically.
I grew up in SW Montana, too, a couple hours' drive from Darby. There were still John Birchers in the area (or, as my parents called them, "Goddamn John Birchers") when I was in high school in the '80s, but until now I hadn't known about what happened in Darby. All I knew is that the Bitterroot Valley was - and remains - a haven for paranoid nutjobs.
I'm the daughter of a John Birch mother, born in the early 60s and raised in both Texas and South Dakota. My mother went on to live in Missouri and Florida. I am an eye witness to her participation and behavior while a member of this organization for most of her adult life. I never saw nor experienced the type of protesting, harassment, and abuses which you describe that went on in Darby. I saw a lot of very orderly meetings (with punch and cookies), letter writing to legislators, and letters to the editors. It was all very boring and non-descript. I think with all organizations, there is the majority of those that are sane and orderly, but also have the fringe radicals that cause trouble and leave people with the wrong impression. I can report that I was on the receiving end of bullying and harassment because she was a Bircher. When I was in high school in South Dakota, she decided to run for house of representatives. The local media was owned by a local wealthy liberal family. The son of this family was in my class. Not only did they take every chance to ruin her political ads, by imposing changes that were not authorized, but I was continually bullied and harassed at school and even at home. This kid got together a gang of 12-16 other kids to bully and harass me as well. It was hard to walk down the hallway or turn a corner without someone there to mock, boo, or make fun of me in some form or fashion. They broke into my locker and left notes that ridiculed me. I went to the principal, a nun, as this was a Catholic high school, but since this wealthy family donated much money to them, she did absolutely nothing. This went on continually for 2 years. This kid went on to study at Stanford and the London School of Economics, and now heads an investment company in San Francisco, and regularly donates to the Republican Party. His sister is a Republican Senator in South Dakota. So I'm guessing they are now abusing the liberal side. Life and people are weird. I never followed my mother's path into the right wing side of politics. As a kid I didn't enjoy spending my Saturdays licking stamps for a letter campaign to state representatives. I especially didn't enjoy the abuse I endured in high school due to my mother's political leanings. I have stayed far away from politics, and have no intention of ever being actively political no matter the party. It saddens me to live in a country where politics is dividing us, where it has gotten so contentious and ugly, but here we are.
So, we know that everything is political. Our food, water, our roads our mail, even our weather & how we cope with disasters. People experiencing homelessness has become political. Our healthcare mess is very political. To opt out is to ignore the fact that politics drives our world. Please don't opt out. You deserve to have your voice heard, esp after going through the hell you've experienced. Please consider joining a group. Even your local humane society or volunteer at a food bank. You'll see people at both of those places who've been bullied too & you could really make a difference in someone's life there
@@jenniferc218 Thank you for your kind words and intentions. Actually, I did just what you suggest and let my voice be heard. My message wasn't to garner pity, but to show that in this political war the American citizens are locked into between our two parties, there are good people on both sides, and there are rotten people on both sides. Just as we have seen with such shocking and low class behavior from Trump, wealth, pedigree, and top education on the left also breeds low class behavior and actions. I offered my voice and my story to counter the narrative. Why? Because I don't like the direction these two parties are leading us too, and the resulting divide. What we need in America is not a winning political party, but more parties to offer balanced power of each other so the citizens can be heard. Not just the wealthy powerful (and often radical) fringes of these two controlling each party and the narrative. As long as we let these two parties continue to have control and wage war in America, everything will be a mess. Neither party are for the people anymore, they are for winning the game. It's NFL politics all day every day.
I understand your point about there being those who desire to do good in every private association I know that all people -- especially Americans -- all Americans whether they wish to conserve or to liberate only need to discover how to provide & maintain a Decent Livelihood for everyone in America without the need for any government (or any social control) to do as Robin the Hood did, namely, take from the HAVES & give those takings to those who are in deprivation; who are HAVE-NOTS. HAVE-NOTS are people who must become people who HAVE-ENOUGH , enough of the (6) external elements that are acquired with the help of others. Fortunately there are only (6) external elements that comprise a Decent Livelihood which each person needs and which Congress can easily afford : 1. A decent supply of the means of subsistence 2. Living & working conditions conducive to health 3. Medical care 4. Opportunities for access to the pleasures of sense as well as the pleasures of play & the aesthetic pleasures 5. Opportunities for access to the goods of the mind through educational facilities in youth & adult life 6. Enough free time from subsistence work both in youth & adult life to take advantage of these opportunities. The only standard we have for judging all of our social , economic , & political institutions & arrangements as just or unjust , as good or bad , as better or worse , derives from our conception [ from 25 centuries of Western thought ] of the good life for man on earth , & from our conviction that , given certain external conditions , it is possible for [ women & ] men to make good lives for themselves by their own efforts . -- M J Adler
These are the (6) external elements which comprise a Decent Livelihood. They are external because they are acquired with the help of others & each Person must acquire them in order to (or as means to the end of) individually pursue a good life : 1. A decent supply of the means of subsistence 2. Living & working conditions conducive to health 3. Medical care 4. Opportunities for access to the pleasures of sense as well as the pleasures of play & the aesthetic pleasures 5. Opportunities for access to the goods of the mind through educational facilities in youth & adult life 6. Enough free time from subsistence work both in youth & adult life to take advantage of these opportunities.
This needs to be understood in historical context. The Birch Society was a response to the growth of communism. Much like all the other Red Scare items of the day.
I read "the Unseen Hand: a conspirital view of history" Back in the 80's. I can see how that bullshit might be appealing to someone that is ignorant of the facts of life.
It's understandable that the PTA didn't know how to deal with this situation. The PTA board should have acted like judges ought to act in the spirit of Socrates. They should separated the actions requested into categories of what was normal routine, emergencies and complicated atypical. For the last category, they should ask clarifying questions about the context, the meaning of the individual words, the purpose, the motivation and the justification then table the motion until the Birchers could be in agreement on the responses. When they return, accept the responses and table the question so that counter arguments can be prepared. The process should be repeated until the question was ripe. Once ripe a vote could be scheduled.
The only standard we have for judging all of our social , economic , & political institutions & arrangements as just or unjust , as good or bad , as better or worse , derives from our conception [ from 25 centuries of Western thought ] of the good life for man on earth , & from our conviction that , given certain external conditions , it is possible for [ women & ] men to make good lives for themselves by their own efforts . -- M J Adler
If you want to produce another revisionist history that comes down to a single word, look at the meaning of the word people. The online 1828 Webster's dictionary says a people is a body of persons. Thinking instead that people and persons are synonyms changes civil rights of a body into personal rights. Montesquieu wrote the people is the sovereign that replaces a monarch or despot in a democratic government.
You're doing a fantastic job! Just a quick off-topic question: I have a SafePal wallet with USDT, and I have the seed phrase. (alarm fetch churn bridge exercise tape speak race clerk couch crater letter). How should I go about transferring them to Binance?
It seems to me you need to do more homework and avoid false equivalencies. It's about the data, not opinion or ideology. The Birch society is based on BS.
Hah, Gladwell knows his audience! I just read Birchers: How the John Birch Society Radicalized the American Right. I've been thinking SO much about democracy lately...like a lot.
I was only eight years old in 1962 when my mother was the parlimentarian for the local PTA chapter at San Rafael Elementary School in Pasadena, California. A few years later she described to me the attempted takeover of her PTA chapter by strangers who just showed up en masse one night. As I recall the story, the attempted take over lasted over the course of several meetings, but after the first meeting I remember her spending hours pouring over this little book called Robert's Rules of Order (a mysterious text I understood not at all) to arm herself against the insurgents. My mom was very smart and quietly tough, and I was left with the impression that her wielding of Robert's Rules of Order helped to carry the day and end the attempt. I don't recall the John Birch Society coming up in my mom's telling of the story, but now it's obvious that's where this story started.
I always found this story to be odd and a little myterious, as in, what the heck was that all about? Now I know! Thanks
Thank goodness for strong, behind-the-scenes folks like your mom!
Robert's rules are great. Can apply organization to any club.
Something else that hurt the PTA was the move from mostly two-parent, single-income households to mostly either dual-income households or single-parent households. Parents simply have less time to participate in the PTA, even if they wanted to.
It's not fair that I say this, but these reports need to be read by Malcolm. These are our fire-side chats. Without the singular voice of FDR narrating, they are not the same.
Great history!
The Mormon church was HEAVILY influenced by the John Birch Society. Ezra Taft Benson was a key leader of the church during the 1960’s-1980’s and was a close confident of Robert Welch. Through Benson’s advocacy, the LDS church membership collectively became a predominantly right wing group, whereas in the century preceding him the membership was more evenly spread across the political spectrum.
Yeah, Joseph Smith and Brigham Young were such Progressives. LOL
The LDS have a common ideology with the Birch society.
Agree with comment about JS and BY. BY was a despicable man. In the early/mid 20th century the membership of the church was more diverse politically than it now is. For example, UT had highest percentage of state vote for FDR in 1932 election (because so many were so poor and needed government assistance). It was because of Ezra (and to a lesser extent J.Reuben Clark) who converted the church membership to almost universally swing to the hard right politically.
great intro. love your work MG. 🙏🏻
also like bens narration.
I grew up in SW Montana, too, a couple hours' drive from Darby. There were still John Birchers in the area (or, as my parents called them, "Goddamn John Birchers") when I was in high school in the '80s, but until now I hadn't known about what happened in Darby. All I knew is that the Bitterroot Valley was - and remains - a haven for paranoid nutjobs.
I'm the daughter of a John Birch mother, born in the early 60s and raised in both Texas and South Dakota. My mother went on to live in Missouri and Florida. I am an eye witness to her participation and behavior while a member of this organization for most of her adult life. I never saw nor experienced the type of protesting, harassment, and abuses which you describe that went on in Darby. I saw a lot of very orderly meetings (with punch and cookies), letter writing to legislators, and letters to the editors. It was all very boring and non-descript. I think with all organizations, there is the majority of those that are sane and orderly, but also have the fringe radicals that cause trouble and leave people with the wrong impression.
I can report that I was on the receiving end of bullying and harassment because she was a Bircher. When I was in high school in South Dakota, she decided to run for house of representatives. The local media was owned by a local wealthy liberal family. The son of this family was in my class. Not only did they take every chance to ruin her political ads, by imposing changes that were not authorized, but I was continually bullied and harassed at school and even at home. This kid got together a gang of 12-16 other kids to bully and harass me as well. It was hard to walk down the hallway or turn a corner without someone there to mock, boo, or make fun of me in some form or fashion. They broke into my locker and left notes that ridiculed me. I went to the principal, a nun, as this was a Catholic high school, but since this wealthy family donated much money to them, she did absolutely nothing. This went on continually for 2 years.
This kid went on to study at Stanford and the London School of Economics, and now heads an investment company in San Francisco, and regularly donates to the Republican Party. His sister is a Republican Senator in South Dakota. So I'm guessing they are now abusing the liberal side. Life and people are weird.
I never followed my mother's path into the right wing side of politics. As a kid I didn't enjoy spending my Saturdays licking stamps for a letter campaign to state representatives. I especially didn't enjoy the abuse I endured in high school due to my mother's political leanings. I have stayed far away from politics, and have no intention of ever being actively political no matter the party. It saddens me to live in a country where politics is dividing us, where it has gotten so contentious and ugly, but here we are.
So, we know that everything is political. Our food, water, our roads our mail, even our weather & how we cope with disasters.
People experiencing homelessness has become political. Our healthcare mess is very political.
To opt out is to ignore the fact that politics drives our world. Please don't opt out.
You deserve to have your voice heard, esp after going through the hell you've experienced.
Please consider joining a group. Even your local humane society or volunteer at a food bank. You'll see people at both of those places who've been bullied too & you could really make a difference in someone's life there
@@jenniferc218 Thank you for your kind words and intentions. Actually, I did just what you suggest and let my voice be heard. My message wasn't to garner pity, but to show that in this political war the American citizens are locked into between our two parties, there are good people on both sides, and there are rotten people on both sides. Just as we have seen with such shocking and low class behavior from Trump, wealth, pedigree, and top education on the left also breeds low class behavior and actions. I offered my voice and my story to counter the narrative. Why? Because I don't like the direction these two parties are leading us too, and the resulting divide. What we need in America is not a winning political party, but more parties to offer balanced power of each other so the citizens can be heard. Not just the wealthy powerful (and often radical) fringes of these two controlling each party and the narrative. As long as we let these two parties continue to have control and wage war in America, everything will be a mess. Neither party are for the people anymore, they are for winning the game. It's NFL politics all day every day.
I understand your point about there being those who desire to do good in every private association
I know that all people -- especially Americans -- all Americans whether they wish to conserve or to liberate only need to discover how to provide & maintain a Decent Livelihood for everyone in America without the need for any government (or any social control) to do as Robin the Hood did, namely, take from the HAVES & give those takings to those who are in deprivation; who are HAVE-NOTS.
HAVE-NOTS are people who must become people who HAVE-ENOUGH , enough of the (6) external elements that are acquired with the help of others.
Fortunately there are only (6) external elements that comprise a Decent Livelihood which each person needs and which Congress can easily afford :
1.
A decent supply of the means of subsistence
2.
Living & working conditions conducive to health
3.
Medical care
4.
Opportunities for access to the pleasures of sense as well as the pleasures of play & the aesthetic pleasures
5.
Opportunities for access to the goods of the mind through educational facilities in youth & adult life
6.
Enough free time from subsistence work both in youth & adult life to take advantage of these opportunities.
The only standard we have for judging all of our social , economic , & political institutions & arrangements as just or unjust , as good or bad , as better or worse , derives from our conception [ from 25 centuries of Western thought ] of the good life for man on earth , & from our conviction that , given certain external conditions , it is possible for [ women & ] men to make good lives for themselves by their own efforts . -- M J Adler
Divide and rule.
One of the first things I recall hearing as a little girl, was how bad the John Birch society was, I mistakenly thought they faded away.
These are the (6) external elements which comprise a Decent Livelihood.
They are external because they are acquired with the help of others
& each Person must acquire them in order to (or as means to the end of) individually pursue a good life :
1.
A decent supply of the means of subsistence
2.
Living & working conditions conducive to health
3.
Medical care
4.
Opportunities for access to the pleasures of sense as well as the pleasures of play & the aesthetic pleasures
5.
Opportunities for access to the goods of the mind through educational facilities in youth & adult life
6.
Enough free time from subsistence work both in youth & adult life to take advantage of these opportunities.
Yup!
This needs to be understood in historical context.
The Birch Society was a response to the growth of communism.
Much like all the other Red Scare items of the day.
I read "the Unseen Hand: a conspirital view of history" Back in the 80's. I can see how that bullshit might be appealing to someone that is ignorant of the facts of life.
It's understandable that the PTA didn't know how to deal with this situation.
The PTA board should have acted like judges ought to act in the spirit of Socrates.
They should separated the actions requested into categories of what was normal routine, emergencies and complicated atypical.
For the last category, they should ask clarifying questions about the context, the meaning of the individual words, the purpose, the motivation and the justification then table the motion until the Birchers could be in agreement on the responses. When they return, accept the responses and table the question so that counter arguments can be prepared. The process should be repeated until the question was ripe. Once ripe a vote could be scheduled.
The only standard we have for judging all of our social , economic , & political institutions & arrangements as just or unjust , as good or bad , as better or worse , derives from our conception [ from 25 centuries of Western thought ] of the good life for man on earth , & from our conviction that , given certain external conditions , it is possible for [ women & ] men to make good lives for themselves by their own efforts . -- M J Adler
If you want to produce another revisionist history that comes down to a single word, look at the meaning of the word people.
The online 1828 Webster's dictionary says a people is a body of persons. Thinking instead that people and persons are synonyms changes civil rights of a body into personal rights.
Montesquieu wrote the people is the sovereign that replaces a monarch or despot in a democratic government.
You're doing a fantastic job! Just a quick off-topic question: I have a SafePal wallet with USDT, and I have the seed phrase. (alarm fetch churn bridge exercise tape speak race clerk couch crater letter). How should I go about transferring them to Binance?
Just send me a bunch of money and it’ll all be goof
It seems to me that one group, the PTA, wants to be able to promote their vision of truth, but discount the John Birch Society’s vision of the truth…
It seems to me you need to do more homework and avoid false equivalencies.
It's about the data, not opinion or ideology. The Birch society is based on BS.
How post-modern! ...The Birchers don't have a vision of the truth. They are too blinded by their cowardice and need for control.