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American (revisionist) History: Part Two
By Bob Chochola
Friday, July 10, 2009 Issue
National Examiner
The president recently connected conservatives, republicans, and (legal) gun owners in America to potential right-wing extremists and, therefore, by deductive reasoning, terror threats that “cling to their guns and Bibles.” Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, officially corroborated this position on the DHS web site with a statement warning about right-wing extremist activities. This wasn’t directly said, but using such buzz words as “right-wing extremist” and “threat” in close proximity to words like “conservative” and “republican” consistently and repetitively, is how good PR works; folks will eventually equate them by association. Fear mongering in other words.
To be fair, there have been a few fringe individuals from the far right responsible for violence, but these have been far and few in between – mostly targeting abortion doctors and clinics. But the media waste no time in such cases to bloviate about right-wing extremism and the obligatory gun control issue they routinely connect to every whacko shooter(s) from Columbine to Virginia Tech. Never mind that these are emotionally disturbed psychotic social deviates driven to kill, as opposed to driven to shoot.
People kill; blaming guns for murder and serial killing is a deliberate knee-jerk overreaction in order to push a political agenda. It’s as preposterous as outlawing money because of Wall Street greed, or words because of bigotry. Wait! Never mind that one.
The panic attack directed at the right is far from accurate and blown way out of proportion when contrasted against the “political activist” nature of the left since the 1960’s, where violence and civil disobedience evolved as acceptable forms of how to get a point across. From the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago to Bush’s ranch in Crawford, Texas, it is typically the left agitating and committing acts of violence, not the right. But the right stands accused, while the left is noble and brave. It’s all about the packaging!
Even before the 2008 presidential race began, the media were foaming at the mouth about “right-wing extremists” and possible violence should Barack Obama win the nomination. But it was liberal protestors disrupting the Republican National Convention arrested for damaging police cars, slashing tires, breaking store windows, possessing Molotov cocktails, napalm bombs, and firearms. No conservative protests disrupted the DNC.[1]
It is debatable and open to interpretation what violence would have occurred following the 2008 election had the other presidential ticket been victorious on November 4th.
Conservative candidates like Sarah Palin have been routinely attacked in public forums by protestors rushing the stage – most notably as she delivered her vice presidential nomination acceptance speech during the RNC. Conservative speakers Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity have been confronted at their homes by liberal activists.[2]
In a constant undercurrent throughout the 2008 presidential race the fear of a possible assassination was on the lips of news reporters all over the land (read: by a right-wing extremist). But it was so ridiculous to discuss even Ted Kennedy refused to respond to questions about it in a CBS interview with Harry Smith. [3] And a New York Times front page headline “Hushed Worry” addressed fears that Obama would be assassinated.[4]
These are, of course, just the tip of the iceberg. The point is that this innuendo is ludicrous. Given the fact that the assassination of President George W. Bush was depicted repeatedly on film and in books – by liberals – it is unfair (not to mention highly unlikely) to assume anyone on the right has such violent intentions, without at least keeping an eye on the left too.
It would be important to note here that “every presidential assassin in the history of the nation has been a liberal – or has had no politics at all. None were right-wingers.”[5]
In her book, Guilty, legal correspondent and best selling author, Ann Coulter, profiles some of the most notorious of these presidential perpetrators. Here are just some of the highlights from her chapter dedicated to left-wing assassins:
On April 14th, 1865 actor/activist John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln because he was opposed to his Republican war policies.[6]
In 1881, Charles J. Guiteau, who shot President James Garfield, belonged to a commune called the Oneida Community, where free love and child rearing were practiced.[7]
In 1901, socialist and anarchist Leon Czolgosz killed President William McKinley.[8]
In 1921, John Schrank shot and wounded Teddy Roosevelt – he had no known political beliefs.[9]
In 1933, Giuseppe Zangara wanted to “make even with capitalists” by killing the president. He narrowly missed shooting President-elect Franklin Roosevelt. According to FBI files, on his way to the electric chair for killing Chicago’s Mayor Anton Cermak, Zangara was “cursing and railing against capitalists”[10] and he had also plotted to kill Republican President Herbert Hoover because he was a capitalist.[11]
On November 22nd, 1963 Lee Harvey Oswald killed President John F. Kennedy. Oswald was a documented communist who studied Russian and moved to the USSR in his late teens. He had a Russian wife and wanted to move to Cuba or Red China.[12] Oswald plotted to kill General Edwin A. Walker[13] and Vice President Nixon. Oswald also plotted to hijack a plane to Cuba where he could “fight in defense of the revolution.”[14] (In light of this “new” information, can we finally put to rest all the ridiculous conspiracy theories surrounding JFK’s death? I thought not!) After being arrested for killing Kennedy, Oswald immediately called John Abt, an attorney for the American Communist Party, asking him to take the case so he (Oswald) could use the trial to “showcase his Marxist beliefs.”[15]
On June 5th, 1968 Sirhan Sirhan assassinated presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. He was a Palestinian extremist angry with RFK for his support of Israel.[16]
On May 15th, 1972 Arthur Bremer shot Democratic presidential candidate George Wallace, because of Wallace’s support for segregation. A search of Bremer’s apartment turned up Black Panther literature and a diary with entries such as “My country ‘tis of the, sweet land of bigotry.”[17]
On September 5th, 1975 Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme pointed a gun at President Gerald Ford. She was part of Charles Manson’s countercultural hippie cult. She pulled a gun on Ford because she was concerned about the plight of the California redwoods.[18]
Just seventeen days later on September 22nd, 1975, Sara Jane Moore tried to kill Ford, because “the government had declared war on the left” and that Nixon and Ford were waging “a continuing assault on America.” Moore tried to kill Ford in order to “allow the winds of change to start.”[19] (Hmmmmm! I think I’ve heard that used somewhere else?)
John Hinckley tried to kill a president to impress a girl.[20]
Martin Luther King was killed by a white racist - otherwise known by liberals as a “right-winger.”[21]
Malcolm X was killed by Black Muslims.[22]
Okay, so the last two were not presidents. But they are worth noting.
Black Panthers angry about bigotry; Palestinian sympathizers angry about the support of Israel; fighting in support of the Cuban revolution; anger (enough to kill a president, or two) directed at capitalism; free love; the plight of California redwoods; none of these issues will be found on your average right-winger’s list of things to do today. But they do account for all but two of the most infamous assassinations, attempted assassinations, and plotted assassinations in American history, proving that the violence – yes, gun violence – directed at elected officials both democrat and republican in the highest office, can be attributed for the most part to the left. Unless, of course, John Hinckley decides to start dating again, then all bets are off.
All of this is also in direct contradiction to the notion that conservatives and Christians are intolerant – a favorite accusation among liberals.
“[Fromme] pulled a gun on [president] Ford because she was concerned about the plight of the California redwoods.”
Who are the intolerant ones again?
Coulter writes, “Inasmuch as [Obama] is the most far left president the country has ever had, his base is composed of the very groups from which political assassins are generally drawn.”[23]
Once again the mainstream media are hot in pursuit of a real non-story. At least they were. Not much has been made of the subject lately – maybe too “hushed” even for the New York Times to mention.
Certainly the drum beat against imagined organized right-wing extremism goes merrily on without much merit and little fact to back-up the hysteria. But given the fact that both sides have produced rogue extremists, still one side’s are (officially) considered dangerous domestic terror threats, while the other side’s are portrayed as noble activist freedom fighters. It’s amazing what the constant drone of public relations can accomplish.
One thing is sure, like crossing the street and only looking in one direction to check if it is safe to do so, sweeping history under the rug, or altering it to suit your needs, can be a road to Perdition.
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[1] See e.g. Rhonda Fukushima, “Man Charged at RNC Had Molotovs, Wanted to ‘Blow S**t Up’,” Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minnesota), Sept. 3rd, 2008; Mara H. Gottfried, “Two GOP Convention Protestors Ordered Held on Firearms Charges: FBI Claims They Had Materials for Molotov Cocktails,” Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minnesota), Sept. 10th, 2008; Mara H. Gottfried, “Two GOP Convention Protestors Still Held on Firearms Charges,” Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minnesota), Sept. 11th, 2008; Violent Protest: “56 Arrested Near Convention Site,” Newsday, New York, Sept. 2nd, 2008; Amy Forliti, “Some Turn Violent in March GOP Convention.” Associated Press Online, Sept. 2nd, 2008.
[2] GUILTY, Ann Coulter; p256, 2009 Crown Publishing, New York.
[3] Harry Smith, “Senator Ted Kennedy Discusses His Endorsement of Barack Obama,” The Early Show, CBS News, Jan. 29th, 2008.[4] Jeff Zeleny, “In Memories of a Painful Past, Hushed Worry About Obama,” The New York Times, Feb. 25th, 2008.
[5] GUILTY, Ann Coulter; p258, 2009 Crown Publishing, New York.
[6] “The Murder of Mr. Lincoln,” New York Times, April 21, 1865 (reprinting letter of John Wilkes Booth). Available at: http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9902E6D81F30EE34BC4951DFB266838E679FDE&oref=slogin.
[7] Kenneth D. Ackerman, Dark Horse: The Surprise Election and Political Murder of President James A. Garfield (Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2003), p. 135; Douglas O. Linder, “The Trial of Charles Guiteau,” University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law 2007. Available at: http://law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/FTrials/guiteau/guiteauaccount.html.
[8] American Experience: Emma Goldman, PBS. Available at: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldman/filmmore/pt.html.
[9] This Day in History: October 14, 1912, Theodore Roosevelt shot in Milwaukee, A & E Television Networks History Channel. Available at: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history.do?action=Article&id=5436.
[10] Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Department of Justice, Washington D.C., Franklin D. Roosevelt (Assassination Attempt). Available at: http://digital.library.miami.edu/gov/FDRAssn.html.
[11] Report of the President’s Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, Appendix 7: A Brief History of Presidential Protection at 512. Available at: http://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/warren-commission-report/appendix7.html.
[12] See generally Gerald Posner, Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of JFK (New York: Anchor Books, 1994); “Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald?,” Frontline, PBS. Available at: http://pbs.gen.in/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/oswald/cron/.
[13] Posner: Case Closed, pp. 91, 102-108.
[14] Ibid., pp. 119-120, 164.
[15] Ibid., p. 362.
[16] Loren Coleman, The Copycat Effect: How the Media and Popular Culture Trigger the Mayhem in Tomorrow’s Headlines (New York: Pocket Paperback, 2004), p. 28.
[17] Timothy W. Maier, “New Chapters in Assassin’s Diary?,” Insight on the News, December 14, 1998; “Bremer’s Release an Unfortunate Reality,” Mobile Register (Alabama), November 11, 2007; Arthur Bremer Biography, Basic Famous People, available at: http://www.basicfamouspeople.com//index.php?aid=7134.
[18] Sandra Salmans, “Leaves from a Family Album,” Newsweek, September 22, 1975. See video: Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme Discusses Her Assassination Attempt on Ford, Saying “His Life Didn’t Mean More Than the Redwoods to Me.” Available at: http://minx.cc/?blog=86&post=209933.
[19] Eileen Keerdoja, “Squeaky and Sara Jane,” Newsweek, November 8, 1976; Interview: “Woman Who Tried to Assassinate Ford,” ABC7, January 3, 2007. Available at: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local&id=4900159.
[20] GUILTY, Ann Coulter; p260, 2009 Crown Publishing, New York.
[21] GUILTY, Ann Coulter; p261, 2009 Crown Publishing, New York.
[22] GUILTY, Ann Coulter; p261, 2009 Crown Publishing, New York.
[23] GUILTY, Ann Coulter; p262, 2009 Crown Publishing, New York.
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(Author’s Note: It seems that I ruffled some feathers with my article “American Revisionist History, Part One” and it has been pulled from the publication. I was officially told, “someone registered a complaint with the president of the company” and that I needed to confirm my sources and post a re-write. In spite of the fact that I did both, the article is yet to be re-printed. The quote in question can be attributed to Mr. George Soros in an interview on CBS 60 Minutes. I’m honored! This was a heavily researched, sourced, footnoted, and factually documented article. I anticipated, in advance, the backlash. Furthermore, since the complaint registered was referencing a direct quote easily verified, I’m assuming the use of someone’s own words can be debated these days even if you have video evidence and a certified transcript of the show to prove what you quoted was actually said. Amazing! Thus if a quote can get my story yanked, is there any doubt at all that what we normally read/see in the mainstream media is 100% controlled and censored by the powers that be? So, for now, the only place you’ll be able to read the edited version of Part One of this series, is on my web site: http://bobzilla.tv/politicaljournal/americanrevhistoryi.html where I alone do the censoring, uh, I mean, editing. Stay tuned, however, I love the attention! And now, ahem, on to Part Two…)
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