What a fabulous line from George C. Scott in Patton and used to illustrate so appropriately the points David Stokes makes in his piece at Townhall today. Hat tip: Paul
Stokes, writing about the shock the extreme leftwing is experiencing when real grassroots America does some community organizing of its own, begins in “Rules for Witnesses:”
There is a scene early on in the movie Patton, where the feisty general watches the forces under his command do battle with those led by the legendary German Panzer leader, Erwin Rommel. To prepare for this particular skirmish, “Old Blood and Guts” studied the writings of his adversary, prompting the memorable line uttered in a gravely voice by actor George C. Scott: “Rommel, you magnificent bastard, I read your book!”
Stokes goes on to describe Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s sputtering and muttering about Nazis and how she relates Nazism and vile people to middle Americans who have had it with the Obama Administration and Congress’ attempt to seize the health care system of the entire country, and are organizing opposition.
Stokes says, we have read your book! He is talking about Saul Alinsky’s “Rules for Radicals” and the seminal writing that all community organizers , including Obama, study when they sign up to “change” America. All I can say is it’s about time everyone reads it. I myself should have read it 40 years ago, but then in 1969, that tumultuous year for college students, I sadly would not have understood the significance. [Historical note: The earlier version of Saul Alinsky’s “Rules for Radicals” was published in hardcover in 1969 by Random House under the title “Reveille for Radicals”]
What Nancy Pelosi is seeing is her side being on the receiving end of some of the kind of methodological medicine the left has been forcing down the country’s throat for quite a long time. I recently got around to reading Saul Alinsky’s book, Rules for Radicals. Yes, I know I should have done so long ago, but I thought I had a good enough grasp on what the man said back in 1971 via the thorough treatment his musings have received from the conservative punditry.
I was wrong. My bad. Every American should read it. It’s chilling.
I believe what we are now witnessing is a case of people being, as the saying goes (and as is actually used in Alinsky’s book) “hoisted with their own petard.” Fire is being fought with fire. The reflexive dismissal of angry citizens showing up at town hall meetings these days to give Washington insiders a piece of their mind as somehow orchestrated, notwithstanding.
This is not a top-down campaign with a few sinister puppeteers pulling the strings. The opposition to liberal health care machinations and other stuff is very real. What they see as orchestration is actually mobilization.
I have been laughing all week watching the radical Left twist themselves inside out as they watch conservatives do real community organizing! Now, it seems the strategy is not so cool, right President Obama! Right Mr. Axelrod! Right Nancy!
What about immigration?
Now that conservatives are understanding community organizing and reading Alinsky, I look forward to the day when we begin to understand the connection of the Alinsky model (create chaos to bring about change) and how it relates to immigration.
Alinsky began his work in ethnic neighborhoods in Chicago. In order for the entire Alinsky strategy to work organizers need angry, poor people (with a little racial tension thrown in for good measure) to continually demand more of the government. The original minorities Alinsky agitated gradually became middle class citizens basically content with their lives and often very patriotic. Darn, there went the army of the revolution—right into decent jobs, their own homes in the suburbs, sending kids to college or proudly to the military.
For all of us wondering where the common sense is of the open borders leaders who continually demand that we import millions of poor immigrants who won’t have jobs and will thusly depend on government support, they are building (or re-building) an Alinsky army. The poor immigrants are just cannon fodder and the humanitarian do-gooders are their cover.
We have been talking about Alinsky in our Community Destabilization category since Obama was elected, here.