The NAACP and a coalition of Far Left groups have joined forces to seek out and expose the "racism" and "extremism" within the Tea Party movement. They have created a new website called TeaPartyTracker.org. It carries the disturbing motto: A Watched Teapot Never Boils.

The strategy is to discredit the Tea Party as a force in mainstream politics by peppering Glenn Beck and conservatives with false charges of "racism." As we saw at the Restoring Honor rally, the definitive proof of Tea Party racism was White people having the audacity to defile the Lincoln Memorial by gathering on a spot which is "owned" by Black people.

The Lincoln Memorial was was dedicated on May 30, 1922: forty years before Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke at that spot in 1963. It was built to honor Abraham Lincoln, a White man, and the hundreds of thousands of Union soldiers, the vast majority of whom were White, who lost their lives in the Civil War.

It was their sacrifice in that military conflict that ended slavery in America. Did Glenn Beck and the Tea Party ever say that the Lincoln Memorial was "owned" by White people? History suggests they have the greater claim to it.

Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin said it belongs to all Americans. They invited all Americans, regardless of their race or religion, to join them at the Lincoln Memorial to celebrate uncontroversial things like patriotism, religion, and military service. Yet the spurious charges of "racism" continue to circulate around the internet.

The best TeaPartyTracker.org could produce was a man wearing a t-shirt at the Restoring Honor rally which said, "Blacks own slaves in Mauitania [sic], Sudan, Niger, and Haiti." Last time I checked, that was a true statement. Human rights organizations like Amnesty International have publicized the survival of slavery in Africa for years.

The photo of the man is saved under the file name "racism." According to the NAACP, it is now "racism" for a White man to point out that Blacks own slaves in Africa. That is grossly offensive to Black people. Under the deranged logic of political correctness and multiculturalism, White people are not allowed to oppose slavery anymore without permission.

Just the sight of hundreds of thousands of White people cheering for Martin Luther King, Jr. made Bob Herbert of The New York Times want to take a shower. 

Fear and loathing of White people - call it Europhobia - is the real issue here. The mainstream media is excited by the homophobia, Islamophobia, racism, nativism, and bigotry that it is constantly detecting in the ordinary American conservatives. They write diatribes about this behavior even when it is clear it doesn't exist.

It is merely the reflection of their own prejudice against Middle America. This is only the latest example.

I have been meaning to write about the Glenn Beck "Restoring Honor" rally for the past few days, but the aftermath has proven more interesting than the event itself. The Left has worked itself up into another frothing rage against Beck and White people.

Where to start?

In The New York Times, Charles Blow describes Glenn Beck as a self aggrandizing, divisive figure who is "defiling" the Civil Rights Movement. His "nightmare" is the "highest order of insult" to the legacy of Martin Luther King: patriotism, piety, military service, honor, inclusiveness.

Glenn Beck holds a church picnic at the Lincoln Memorial and invites everyone in America to join him. Al Sharpton shows up to protest because too many White people for his tastes have gathered on that sacred spot.

Not to be outdone, Bob Herbert also weighs in at The New York Times, describing Glenn Beck as "an ignorant, divisive, pathetic figure" and "a small man with a mean message" and a "provocateur" who is playing with matches in the "tinderbox of racial and ethnic confrontation" and slithering along the "low road." He is so awful that he makes Herbert want to take a shower.

Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin need to chill out ... before the Ku Klux Klan starts blowing up Black churches.

Can you say delusional? Come to the Lincoln Memorial and celebrate God, America, and our military heroes with Alveda King. You want to lynch Black people!

Howard Dean, the nutroots Democratic candidate the 2004 election, described Glenn Beck's followers as "lost souls" who follow a "racist hatemonger." Beck talks in his speech about "our churches, our mosques, our synagogues" ... every religion in America on display on stage and attendees cheer on Martin Luther King, Jr., but this is interpreted as the clearest evidence yet that Glenn Beck is a racist hatemonger.

Frank Rich ridicules "oppressed white Tea Party America" and nails The Man who is behind it all. Christopher Hitchens describes Restoring Honor as "the Waterworld of White self pity."

Eugene Robinson sees Glenn Beck as a "puffed up huckster" in a "bicorn hat" engaged in "an exercise in self aggrandizment on a Napoleonic scale." He is making the false assertion that the Civil Rights Movement was about equal justice. That we are told is a bunch of nonsense.

After the success of Restoring Honor became apparent, The Huffington Post put out a $100,000 bounty on Glenn Beck's head for a sex tape that could destroy his career. Clearly, the usually humble, self effacing Beck was right that honor desperately needs to be restored in some corners.

You just can't win with some people. In the eyes of the Left, conservatives like Glenn Beck should be tarred and feathered as racists no matter what they do.

When I first heard about this story, I had difficulty believing it was true. Flipping through the news channels on cable television, I couldn't find anything about the incident. Browsing The New York Times and The Washington Post, I haven't seen a word written about the latest "teachable moment" in American race relations.

Mysteriously enough, Eugene Robinson and Frank Rich haven't had anything to say about the "racism" on display at the Iowa State Fairgrounds this past weekend. It doesn't fit the progressive narrative of bigoted, reactionary White Americans oppressing poor, innocent "people of color" like we have seen in the Gatesgate, Arizona, and Ground Zero Mosque debates.

If mobs of Whites had targeted non-Whites at a Tea Party and physically assaulted them on the basis of their skin color, every liberal newspaper, webzine, blog, and television show in America from the East Coast to the West Coast would be thundering in unison against "hate" and "racism." Just imagine the frenzy of moral outrage that liberal talking heads like Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, and Rachel Maddow would get themselves worked up into.

Crickets are chirping this time around.

Over the weekend, mobs of Black youths roamed the Iowa State Fairgrounds and randomly assaulted White attendees in what was openly called "Beat Whitey Night." The unruly mob also managed to assault two police officers who had to use a stun gun and chemical sprays to regain control of the situation.

When pressed for comment about racially inflammatory gang related violence in Iowa, Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad (D-Des Moines) said he "doesn't have enough information" to determine whether or not the attacks were racially motivated.

Unfortunately, like any other city, you have certain parts of town that individuals congregate in," Abdul-Samad said. "You have those that go into that area with no problem, and those who cannot."

He added, "We of course need to work on race relations. If anyone says we don't, they are playing games with themselves."

Apparently, those who can go "into that area" without problem are Black, and those who cannot go "into that area" are White. It is comforting to know that Des Moines is "like any other city" in America where Whites know better than to trespass in no-go zones.

Unfortunately, we don't have sufficient information at the present time to determine whether or not a "hate crime" has been committed here. Plant your heads in the sand. Who could have ever predicted that?

In all likelihood, the NAACP will rush to the defense of the "youths" who were arrested in Des Moines, as was the case with the "Jena Six" heroes, and browbeat White Iowans over their "bigotry" and "racism" that led to the unfortunate, but justifiable violent assaults on White patrons of the Iowa State Fair.

 "Social justice" was crying out for some kind of remedy to the chronic unemployment that afflicts the Black community. Such is the twisted logic of multiculturalism and political correctness that now infects the American Heartland.

What happened in Iowa is but the latest poignant reminder.

Below is Pat Buchanan's controversial - and legendary - speech at the 1992 Republican National Convention. In the speech, Pat raises the battle cry for what has come to be known as the culture war. As Pat states, this isn't a war for territory, resources, or even political power, but the very hearts and souls of Americans everywhere. Today his words ring just as true as they did two decades ago. 

A sick 29 year-old South Carolina woman murdered her two sons by suffocation on Monday morning, and dumped them in the North Edisto river.  This time it was the local police department jumping to the murderer's defense, shifting the blame, and making excuses.  In spite of the grisly killings, and the fact that the perpetrator, Shaquan Duley, initially lied to police about what happened, hyper-Liberal cnn.com offered this as the story's headline: Police: Dead kids' mom fought with grandma over parenting.

In addition to purportedly taking heat from her mother, Duley was described as "financially desperate", "overwhelmed", and suffering from unemployment.  Orangeburg County Sheriff Larry Williams even praised the killer, saying she, "has been basically a good mom."  Williams also provided this jumbled statement about Duley: "We believe that her thoughts were for me to be free and to do what I wish to do, whatever that may be, if I didn't have the children, I will get rid of them."

The incident does have broader implications for our society.  Most prominently, it makes one wonder why we continue to support a welfare system that financially rewards poor women for having more babies that they cannot or will not take care of.  The murders also offer another example of how poverty, destitution, and crime are the correlative outcome of a family environment in which the father is nowhere to be found.  Shaquan Duley is black, and sadly, between 70% and 80% of black children in America grow up without the presence of their biological father.  Discussing these societal ills is logical and necessary, but only after the criminals are dealt with appropriately by the law and in the media.  In this case, Shaquan Duley has been excused and explained to the brink of complete exoneration.  

The fallout from these killings is, in a way, very reminiscent of the Omar Thornton saga a few weeks ago.  The procedure works like this: First, horrific crimes are committed by a protected minority (crimes that ordinarily are universally derided as savage and completely inexcusable). Next, the media, police, and other talking heads jump through hoops to offer endless explanations for why the criminal was driven to such lenghts, and most of the conditioned American public takes the bait.  Lastly, the incident fades into memory, brushed off until the next crime ripe for a twisting inevitably comes up.    

The Los Angeles Times is warning that Republican criticism of the Ground Zero Mosque could backfire and split the GOP in the run up to the 2010 midterm elections. As proof of the impending schism, the authors cite Grover Norquist and Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey.

68% of Americans oppose the Ground Zero Mosque. Only 28% favor its construction. The opposition includes 82% of Republicans, 54% of Democrats, and 70% of Independents. 53% of New York City voters oppose the Ground Zero Mosque along with 61% of New Yorkers.

That's what any objective observer calls a winning issue.

In Time, Mark Halperin peddles the same self serving advice: avoid the Ground Zero Mosque. Please don't do it. Pressing the issue would cause "painful divisions." Unlike Cap and Trade, Obamacare, and Comprehensive Immigration Reform.

From my perspective, the "painful divisions" appear to be splintering the Democratic Party, not the GOP, now that Barack Obama's full throated defense of Islamization has forced every Democrat to take sides on the issue.

Obama's intent seems to have been to maximize the damage to his own political coalition and further alienate the independent voters who have been deserting him for months now. Sensing disaster, liberals are now trying to persuade gullible, high minded conservatives that their own self interest is served by refusing to score points at the Left's expense.

Since when did the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, and Newsweek start caring about the electoral fortunes of the GOP?

The same dishonest advice comes from the Left on affirmative action, multiculturalism, illegal immigration, gay marriage and all the other winning social issues.

In every case, the social issue is far more popular with the public than the Republican Party, as we saw when Proposition 8 passed in California while going to Obama in a landslide. In every case, Democrats lose when there is real debate on these issues.

Wave the bloody shirt. It is smart politics. It is also the right thing to do.

This past weekend, Youth for Western Civilization members attended the Freedom Action Conference in Valley Forge. The main focus of the event was on limiting the power of the federal government, and on the usage of 'environmentalism' as a phony cover to push far-left agendas which would be rejected if the true nature of these programs was known. The conference allowed us to meet members of three state legislatures, nationally renowned author Tom Woods, and the 2004 nominee for President from the Libertarian Party.

Youth for Western Civilization was proud to operate a booth at this event, which not only gave us the opportunity to interact with the conference attendees, but also to spread the word about our group to and to pass out loads of informational literature on immigration, political correctness, and other issues which we seek to educate the public on.

The conference organizers were well aware of attempts by far-left groups to portray non-leftist groups in a false light. Tom DeWeese, the man who organized the conference, opened with the admonishment.  “If you are here from the SPLC, please buy the live stream, so you don't misquote us when you do your attack piece.”

Michael Badnarik, the 2004 Libertarian Party nominee for Presidential Candidate, had advice for the attendees: “Thomas Jefferson told us the only rights you have are the ones you are willing to fight for.” Contrary to the claims of campus leftists, Badnarik noted that the 1^st Amendment to our Constitution was intended specifically to protect political speech above all.

Badnarik discussed his experience with 'free speech zones' on campus during his 2004 Presidential campaign. At one campus in particular, he was scheduled for a large auditorium, and afterwards suggested that they reconvene in a classroom for a more intimate atmosphere. He was informed by the campus administrators that this was not possible, because the auditorium was the “free speech zone” on campus. Apparently, the rest of campus was a “speech-free zone”. Defiantly, he stood his ground and told the students and campus administrators that “anywhere I happen to be standing is a free speech zone.”

Badnarik also warned against a common tendency on the well-informed right to be dismissive of ordinary Americans, even those who up to now have bought into the misinformation put out by the left. “We need to bring people over to our side,” he said, “we're not going to do that with sarcasm and ridicule” of them. He concluded by noting that “the founding fathers were not extraordinary men, they were ordinary men doing extraordinary things.”

Washington State Representative Matt Shea also spoke at the conference. He addressed the problem of granting illegal aliens access to state resources, noting that the Washington Department of Licensing literature said that it 'will accept a signature as an attestation of WA residence', which obviously leads the system open to widespread abuse by illegal aliens and others willing to lie on their forms, which apparently are not subject to any verification. As a solution, he is proposing a law which will require verification of citizenship for access to all state services and licenses.

Bill Jasper spoke on the issue of Biometrics. Amongst numerous other problems with requiring biometrics for state driver' licenses, he mentioned the location of the international corporation which is placed in charge of the process, Saffron. The company is based in France, where muslims make up a large portion of the population, and growing at 4 times the rate of other demographics in France, so many of the employees will be Muslim he said. He viewed this as a big problem due to the potential for Islamic terrorists to gain access to the information, which would neutralize and reverse the supposed anti-terrorism intent of requiring biometrics.

Michael Coffman discussed the western tradition of the Lockean model, in which local government is viewed as better, since it is closer to people, a concept which our Catholic readers are familiar with as the principle of subsidiarity. Addtionally, Locke viewed the preservation of property rights as themost important, including the rights of the person and ability to create wealth unhindered by government. This was contrasted to the view put forth by the French philosopher Rousseau, who said property rights were only designed for the rich, and “subjected all mankind to perpetual labor, slavery, and wretchedness.” At that time, property in France could only be owned by royalty he said, which makes the appropriation of these views by the modern 'Progressive' movement inappropriate. The modern 'Progressive' movement rejects unalienable rights, and instead supports positive rights such as the 'right' to get free healthcare, the 'right' to get a marriage license from the state, the 'right' not to be offended, or the 'right' to move freely across borders.

Coffman criticized the arrogance of those who represent the modern 'Progressive' movement. “There is no critical thinking by these people,” he said, “sometimes I wonder whether they have 2 brain cells to rub together, yet they view themselves as the greatest critical thinkers in history.” He went on to describe their fanatic pathology as lacking in sanity, saying that “These people literally have psychological problems, very definite psychological problems, and they are imposing them on the rest of us.”

Richard Mack, the former Sheriff of Graham County, Arizona, was supportive of that state's battle against the Obama administration regarding their recently passed 1070 law. “The states formed this country, and they can take back whatever they want” he said.

Tom DeWeese wrapped up the conference with a talk exposing the misuse of the 'environmentalism' label by elements of the left. “From the beginning, this most popular of causes had nothing to do with protecting the environment and everything to do with destroying liberty” he concluded. Like us at Youth for Western Civilization, he supports reasonable measures to improve the environment through responsible conservationism.

We at Youth for Western Civilization are quite familiar with this misuse of the 'environmentalist' label. Many times we have seen it used by leftists who claim the 'environmentalist' label, while supporting the mass immigration which causes the population growth which leads to urban sprawl, increased pollution, and more competition for water and other natural resources. Additionally, many of these people come from cultures which do not value and respect the environment and conservationism the way we in the West do. We support responsible conservation in accord with our traditional Western values of independence and liberty, as well as sensible immigration and population policies which benefit the environment.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) recently released a list of six schools that most blatantly violated student’s rights. Five of the six schools (83%) made the list for incidents involving race or gender as the impetus for disciplinary action against students, or in one case, a professor.

One of the particularly striking cases occurred at Bucknell University, where the members of the Bucknell University Conservatives Club (BUCC) had a demonstration against Obama’s stimulus and affirmative action which was shut down by administrators. While the average Tea Party member or mainstream libertarian would have caved and recruited some minority speaker to their next rally, the BUCC refused to back down and filed suit with the aid of The FIRE.

Unfortunately the students at Boston’s Tufts University failed to realize the lesson that apologizing to the Left will win you zero sympathy. After students published a satirical article entitled "Come All Ye Black Folk" in the conservative student newspaper, The Primary Source, lampooning their institution's race-based admissions process, minority students filed harassment charges against the paper, even though the conservatives ran a full-page advertisement apologizing for the article.

Boston was the scene of yet another controversy, where Professor Donald Hindley, a fifty year veteran at Brandeis, made the mistake of explaining in his Latin American Politics class that some in the United States of America pejoratively refer to Mexicans as “wetbacks." Regardless of its context or a sneaking suspicion I have that Donald Hindley is probably as much of an immigration restrictionist as John McCain, he still was ruthlessly persecuted by the politically correct regime that runs his institution.

These are just a few of the more arcane cases that seem to happen daily on university campuses across the country.  Youth for Western Civilization has experienced its own travails, with events canceled without reason and even entire chapters blacklisted by administrators at Providence College and Liberty University. 

Although biased professors constitute a dangerous threat in the classroom through the dissemination of propaganda, the administrators are often career Leftists that act as the Stasi of the diversity-obsessed status quo. These useful idiots ride the gravy train of a personal connection to maneuver themselves into positions where they can impose their Leftist worldview, taking comfy, yet influential positions such as event coordinators or judicial officers.

Obviously the modern university is draconian when it comes to acculturating their pupils into the current left-wing social apparatus, and is willing to go some extreme lengths to ensure this unnatural state of affairs is preserved. In this warped age, we are lucky to have organizations like The FIRE that take a classical approach to free speech on campus and are willing to actively litigate and bring to light those that breach our basic rights in the name of the diversity crusade.

Here is the detailed list recently released by The FIRE.

In the presence of fellow crooked politicians, Congressman Charlie Rangel held his 80th birthday bash last night at New York's flashy Plaza Hotel.  Why did he chose to celebrate his June 11th birthday on August 11th?  That question is up for debate.  Perhaps Rangel needed something to celebrate as he deals with messy ethics charges that threaten to take away his position in the House of Representatives.

No shame seemed to be emanating from the event, only arrogance and glee.  Mr. Rangel has every right to celebrate his birthday, but the timing and the manner in which he did so left many Americans agitated.  Failed former NYC mayor David Dinkins summed up the event pretty well by flashing an obscene gesture towards a protester.  Dinkins might as well have given the finger to all New Yorkers along with the rest of the American people.

In recent years, Rangel, who represents North Manhattan and a sliver of Queens, has tiptoed around the law.  This year, he was finally called out and charged by the House Ethics Committee on a slew of infractions, most of them revolving around a lack of sufficient payment on his dwellings in New York and Puerto Rico.  Instead of bowing out with dignity, as even President Obama suggested he should, Rangel has stubbornly continued his career, and appears poised to do so until the bitter end.

Rangel enjoys widespread support among his constituents, which is not all that surprising in a district that is 72.8% minority.  93% of voters in Rangel's 15th district cast their ballot for President Obama in 2008, and it is considered to be one of the two most Democratic congressional districts in the entire country.  Last night, Rangel even received votes of confidence from former Republican Senator Al D'Amato and Independent NYC mayor Mike Bloomberg.  Meanwhile, an appalled populace has lit up the blogosphere in the last few days, expressing their disgust at the way Rangel has carried himself recently.  Rangel may still have the support of many politicians, and of those who live in and around Harlem, but most aware Americans are fed up.

While ordinary American people battle every day with a deep recession, political aristocrats spend lavishly on vacations, homes, and "birthday" celebrations.  Last week, an anonymous blogger lamented that while Michelle Obama and her daughter were living it up in ritzy Marbella, Spain, he was spending his short summer vacation in a tent at Mud Lake.  Apparently lost on the political class is the level of deep disconnect that their extravagance conveys to the average American.  Or perhaps they do recognize the message they're sending, and just don't care. 

Although Obama was only able to get his bill making massive changes to the health care system passed by promising that free or subsidized health care would not be given to illegal aliens, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus is now pushing to extend those health care benefits to illegal aliens, while announcing that they expect support from both Congressional leadership and the Obama administration.

Raul Grijalva, an Arizona member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, claims the deal was pre-arranged.  “The expectation was that everybody knew it was unfair and that a new immigration bill would correct that,” adding that he was assured of this from levels “high enough to feel secure about it.”.

The illegal alien lobby feels cheated and ripped off that Obamacare was passed without coverage for illegal aliens.  “There was a widespread sense in the community that immigrants were thrown under the bus in health care reform, and there was a sense that there would be a moral obligation to undo some of the damage,” says Deepak Bhargava, a former ACORN employee who is now executive director of the Center for Community Change.  The Center for Community Change includes amongst its board members former Congressman Ron Dellums, who is an admirer of Fidel Castro and other Marxist dictators; and Cecelia Munoz, Vice President of the racist advocacy group ‘La Raza’ (‘The Race’).

Some suggest that amnesty itself, even if it does not immediately grant citizenship, would be enough to qualify illegal aliens for free or subsidized health care.  “Clearly, if they have status for a period of time, even if it is a pending status, they are no longer an undocumented immigrant and therefore they could, for example, purchase insurance with their own money,” says Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey.  Why these illegal aliens do not currently purchase health insurance with their own money, which Sen. Menendez claims they are capable of doing, was not explained.

Nancy Pelosi is going along with this scheme, according to her spokespersyn Nadeam Elshami, “Once Senate Republicans stop obstructing comprehensive immigration reform and it becomes the law of the land, those who become citizens or legal residents will have access to the exchange.”  “The exchange” refers to a government-sponsored system which enables people to obtain health insurance at discounted rates.

Some members of the illegal alien lobby propose removing the current 5-year wait time for legal immigrants to get access to Medicare benefits, and instead grant them benefits as soon as they enter the country or receive an amnesty.  Others want to give them tax breaks for obtaining health insurance through the discounted exchanges. “If we want newly legalized immigrants to bear equal responsibilities, they must have equal opportunities to meet those responsibilities,” says Jon Blazer, a lawyer for the National Immigration Law Center.

The National Immigration Law Center is an organization which not only advocates for unrestricted immigration and unrestricted access to welfare and other government benefits for immigrants, but also receives funding from the U.S. Department of Justice.  The federal government is funding a group which advocates for the importation of the world's poor and immediately placing them on government assistance.  Even with the current massive budget deficit, the federal government is spending money to push for policy changes which will draw people from all over the planet to add to the public assistance rolls.

Last fall, Obama himself told the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute “that’s why I strongly support making sure folks who are here legally have access to affordable, quality health insurance under this plan, just like everybody else.”  Lest anyone be tempted to fall for the legal/illegal dichotomy trap, remember that with an amnesty, they'll all be 'legal'.

If an amnesty is granted, and all newly 'legal' immigrants are allowed access to Medicaid, the cost will be enormous.  Exact estimates vary with the estimates on the total number of illegal aliens currently residing in the United States, but around 86% of illegal aliens are below the income threshold to qualify for Medicaid, including over 50% who are in the lowest income levels and thus would qualify for the highest amount of subsidies.  The Center for Immigration Studies places the total estimate at least $8.1 billion per year.

Last September, when Obama told Congress that his proposed health care changes did not include extending coverage to illegal aliens, Joe Wilson exclaimed “You lie!”.  It appears that Obama, Pelosi, and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus are trying to prove him right.