The library of a pro-Westerner does not typically include much from today’s pop-culture.  Whether we are mulling over the pessimism of Spengler, studying the lives of men who tried to revive old military cultures, or looking to religions old and current in hopes of freeing our minds from the pseudo-intellectualism and perverse culture of the day, we are always finding things to read without ever having to check the best sellers lists.

Yesterday, though, I decided to pick up Stephen King’s latest: the short story Blockade Billy. While professional sports are not my cup of tea, King’s baseball story should be interesting to those with pro-Western sentiments.  Its narrator, an elderly man and a "Real American," is easy to relate to as he frequently laments the cultural decline of his favorite sport.  He particularly sees the behavior of fans as markers of this, whether it be interfering with live balls, targeting referees and umpires, or dressing up as chefs for Gary Sheffield.

The plot takes place in the late 50s, and King paints a picture of the sport as one in transition from the “good ol’ days” where the athletes were true sportsman and were paid more like professionals to the fame-driven, egotistical state of the game today.  An unknown minor league player, Bill Blakely, is picked up by a fictional club, the New Jersey Titans and quickly becomes a star catcher.  Despite his quick rise to fame, he is eventually forgotten and his name removed from the history of the sport because of a crime he commits.

Whether or not King is further trying to critique modern professional sports with this plot, as the criminal athlete today is likely to serve a light sentence or get a book deal rather than be existentially erased, he succeeds in writing an interesting novella that’s worth an hour’s read.   King’s critiques of the professional sports world of today are mostly spot on, although his comparison of fans bringing signs to stadiums to the Nuremberg rallies is one of the odder violations of Godwin’s law that I have ever seen.

Also included with Blockade Billy is the creepy short Morality, which can be remembered for first appearing tattooed to Israeli actress Bar Refaeli’s body on the cover of Esquire Magazine, quite creepy indeed!  This tale seems to pose itself as a critique of Christian morality and even refers to Freudian drivel to make its points.  While Morality adds little, Blockade Billy is worth a quick read and is a nice relief from the dense books we so often get caught up in.

KrisAnne Hall, an assistant Florida state attorney, was fired Monday by her supervisor, Skip Jarvis, who is the State Attorney for the Third Judicial Circuit of Florida, which is the local prosecutor’s office.  Jarvis gave his reason for firing Hall as "She was speaking at some political events, some things were anti-state and anti-government."  Or, as KrisAnne Hall put it, "I was told I could speak about the Constitution openly or keep my job."

Jarvis said the specific activity of Hall which he found offensive was her "discussing a desire for less government and smaller budgets."  Although Jarvis claimed that “she can say and do what she wants, but not while under my flag," Hall had never claimed to be speaking or acting in an official position, and did so entirely on her own time and using her own resources and funds.  Jarvis responded to this with the claim that "in these small towns everybody knows who my people are."

So, apparently, if living in a small town and working for the government, you are not permitted to say anything - even while acting as a private citizen - that disagrees with the political views of your supervisor, or you can be fired.  What makes this even more disturbing is that the supervisor in this case is the chief prosecutor for the area.

As usual, this only applies to people from the right end of the political spectrum.  Isabel Garcia is the Pima County Legal Defender, meaning she is head of the county’s public defender office.  She co-chairs an organization called the Coalición de Derechos Humanos, whose logo is a map showing the state which employs her annexed by a foreign government.  Recently, Garcia appeared on CNN to denounce the Governor of her state and the passage of Arizona’s 1070 law which assists in protecting the state against illegal immigration, which she called "illegal" and "unconstitutional."  Garcia finished up her interview with the proclamation "the resistance begins."  In the past, Garcia has participated in the beating and decapitation of an effigy of an Arizona Sheriff, Joe Arpaio.

Obviously there is something wrong when one attorney in the state public justice system is allowed to promote the annexation by a foreign country of the state which employs her, but another is fired for promoting the Constitution on which our country is founded.

For reference, here is the speech by KrisAnne Hall which got her fired.

Via Conservative Fun House

He was once a loser, picked on every day by his high school bully. Now, 10 years later he is ready to get revenge, but there is just one problem. He is white and the bully is black. How will he be able to enact his brutal and bloody revenge without anyone thinking it was a hate crime? He has an idea.

In the aftermath of the Arizona immigration law, Representative Peter Palumbo (D-16) the Deputy Majority Leader and a longtime foe of illegal immigration, decided to introduce a similar bill to the Rhode Island House of Representatives.  Representative Palumbo’s bill did not go without attention, making headlines around the country ranging from CNN.com to an interview on Fox News with Neil Cavuto.

Of course upon hearing of this bill radical leftists arrived on the scene to stage an unruly demonstration in the middle of the House Floor.  They entertained the legislature by whining until escorted out by Capitol Police.  Interestingly, Representative Douglas Gablinske, who was on the floor at the time, commented of the protesters, “I didn’t remember any Latinos there; I don't remember any African-Americans. What I remember was a group of mostly younger people -- white, Caucasian who were milling about" (CNN.com).

Given such “hostile” pressure, House Speaker Gordon Fox decided to table the legislation which was up to twelve cosponsors on the grounds that this was an issue for the federal government to solve.  Apparently Speaker Fox did not receive the memo that a recent NY Times poll indicates that over 60% of Americans support the new Arizona law.  He must be too busy trying to balance the budget for the end of session that includes between 150-350 million tax dollars annually that go to social services specifically for illegal aliens (stated by Palumbo in his interview with Cavuto).

Refusing to back down in the face of Speaker Fox’s pathetic excuse, Representative Palumbo organized a protest at the steps of the Statehouse with the Rhode Island Tea Party, right wing Tenth Amendment Activists, and Rhode Islanders for Immigration Law Enforcement (RIILE).  It was an impressive turnout with around 150 vibrant supporters attending even though the rally took place at 4PM while most people are still in work.

Rhode Islanders at the rally were generally unified in their opposition to Speaker Fox, and the fact that the Rhode Island General Assembly is too cowardly to actually take a firm stance on what is a very important issue.  The general feeling I received after speaking with a wide variety of people was that even the more pragmatic Republicans and moderate conservatives who would normally balk on this issue were coming out in support of this piece of legislation. 

The rally then moved into the statehouse rotunda where rousing speeches were given by Terry Gorman, the Founder and Director of RIILE, local radio show hosts Jon Depetro and Helen Glover, and a variety of other activists. I even managed to meet a couple of reporters and get a quick interview with a local radio station.

It was an interesting rally with a few important points of interest.  One is that YWC is definitively on the map, and that we are a known quantity to both friend and foe alike.  A number of the leftists sifting through the crowd kept taking photos of me once they recognized the logo on the shirt. 

Additionally, a number of random activists from around the state who I never have met before came up and recognized the organization and voiced their support for our mission statement.  I even met a faculty member at Providence College who will go unnamed who told me he had been a long time supporter of YWC and deplored the current state of the college.  This is fairly typical.  YWC's support is like an iceburg -- we have a huge number of supporters who are worried about their jobs or academic status and feel they can only endorse us silently.

The tide is definitely on our side, and if Rhode Island is any indication, Americans are truly ready to take their country back.  With courageous politicians like Peter Palumbo, and an army of dedicated activists, there is no reason to allow the political class to ignore our concerns while our country is thrown into the trash heap of history.

Video of the rally from the Providence Journal:

http://www.projo.com/video/?nvid=414317

Sources

Rep. Palumbo on Neil Cavuto:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-X1syr9t1Q

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/04/us/04poll.html

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/05/25/rhodeisland.immigration/index.html

http://newsblog.projo.com/2010/05/palumbo-surprised-by-fox-disal.html

An instant classic:

The New Black Panthers, headed by a man who has openly called for the genocide of all white people, are having a conference at a swanky hotel in Atlanta.  Celebrities, former members of Congress, and well known political organizers are in attendance.  No one seems bothered by this -- they are all too busy looking for evidence of extremism among the Tea Party.  This week -- why conservatives need to stop getting played by the media and why we need to stop obeying their rules. 

Also, here's the link referenced in the broadcast, a 2006 protest attended by YWC founder Kevin DeAnna that should provide some enlightenment on one Malik Zulu Shabazz.

It is the story that won't go away.

YWC has some good news to report: a new CNN poll has found that we are winning the fight for the hearts and minds of the American people.

Here are the results:

1.) 82% of Americans oppose the Arizona boycott.

2.) 41% of Americans want all illegal aliens in America deported. This is up 15 points from 2008.

3.) 88% of Americans want more federal agents policing the border. This is up 14 points from 2006.

4.) 54% of Americans want the 700 mile long border fence with Mexico completed. This is up 9 points from 2006.

5.) 7 out of 10 Americans support a federal ID card.

6.) 71% of Americans want more crackdowns on employers of illegal aliens.

7.) 75% of Americans want the number of illegal aliens reduced.

8.) 57% of Americans support Arizona's new anti-illegal immigration law.

9.) 17% of Americans - the progressive minority - would support a boycott of Arizona.

10.) Arizona Senator Russell Pearce plans to push for a new law that would deny citizenship to anchor babies.

11.) Massachusetts has passed its own crackdown on illegal aliens.

The Obama administration is as listless on immigration as it has been reacting to the Gulf Oil Spill. In a press conference today, Obama dropped the bombshell that the National Guard troops he is sending the border won't be empowered to actually do anything. Instead, they will provide "intelligence, reconnaissance, and back office support."

Yesterday, Senate Democrats killed a move by John McCain to send an additional 6,000 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. They also repelled a measure by John Cornyn of Texas and John Kyl of Arizona to allocate $2 billion more for border security. 

Meanwhile, President Obama's approval rating has dipped into negative territory. According to a new Gallup poll, 47% disapprove of his job performance; 46% approve.

We're slowly winning the battle for public opinion. John McCain's sudden reversal on immigration all the proof we need. A few years ago, Senate Republicans tried to force amnesty on America. Now they are acting as a firewall. Independent voters have abandoned the Democrats in droves.

A few city councils passing empty resolutions and liberals bloviating in declining mainstream newspapers isn't going to change this new emerging consensus.

When we made our new website, we lost some of the stuff on the old Western Youth website.  I found this in the archives.  This is from April 2009, in the aftermath of the first Tom Tancredo event at the University of North Carolina.  This is me on the Mark and Jim show in Los Angeles. 

Obviously, we are in a much different place now than where we were then.  However, as the Tea Party movement and the Arizona controversy has grown since then, I think my point is even more relevant.  Has any conservative group, ever, even in the midst of the supposedly terrifying rise of right wing populism, ever shouted down a liberal speaker?  (Ok, besides Congressman Joe "You Lie" Wilson.)  Any conservatives throwing bricks through windows while leftists try to talk?

Here's a tip for every conservative -- no matter what you do, you are the bad guy.  Leftists can protest, use extreme rhetoric, flaunt radical connections, and even use violence.  No one will care.  The double standard is there because leftists are the establishment.  The establishment actively favors what is happening to this nation.  They are in power -- we are occupied.  Recognize that, and you'll be ready to start mobilizing for real change in this country.

Unlike most liberal commentators, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof decided to actually travel to Africa, tour the countryside , and talk to locals to examine the root causes of the continent’s troubles.  Kristof’s travels took him to Zimbabwe earlier, and now bring him to Mont-Belo in the Congo Republic.  What he discovered was this:

There’s an ugly secret of global poverty, one rarely acknowledged by aid groups or U.N. reports. It’s a blunt truth that is politically incorrect, heartbreaking, frustrating and ubiquitous:

It’s that if the poorest families spent as much money educating their children as they do on wine, cigarettes and prostitutes, their children’s prospects would be transformed. Much suffering is caused not only by low incomes, but also by shortsighted private spending decisions by heads of households.

One youth he encountered, Jovali Obamza, will soon no longer be able to attend school because his family is three months behind in tuition payments.  Although education is officially free in the Congo Republic, every school charges a small tuition of around $2.50 per month or so.  Kristof describes his encounter with the youth’s parents:

We asked to see Jovali’s parents. The dad, Georges Obamza, who weaves straw stools that he sells for $1 each, is unmistakably very poor. He said that the family is eight months behind on its $6-a-month rent and is in danger of being evicted, with nowhere to go.

The Obamzas have no mosquito net, even though they have already lost two of their eight children to malaria. They say they just can’t afford the $6 cost of a net. Nor can they afford the $2.50-a-month tuition for each of their three school-age kids.

“It’s hard to get the money to send the kids to school,” Mr. Obamza explained, a bit embarrassed.

But Mr. Obamza and his wife, Valerie, do have cellphones and say they spend a combined $10 a month on call time.

In addition, Mr. Obamza goes drinking several times a week at a village bar, spending about $1 an evening on moonshine. By his calculation, that adds up to about $12 a month — almost as much as the family rent and school fees combined.

I asked Mr. Obamza why he prioritizes alcohol over educating his kids. He looked pained.

This family is more the rule than the exception.  Mr. Obamza is actually one of the best in the village in regard to moderating the amount of money spent on alcohol and cigarettes:

Other villagers said that Mr. Obamza drinks less than the average man in the village (women drink far less). Many other men drink every evening, they said, and also spend money on cigarettes.

“If possible, I drink every day,” Fulbert Mfouna, a 43-year-old whose children have also had to drop out or repeat grades for lack of school fees, said forthrightly. His eldest son, Jude, is still in first grade after repeating for five years because of nonpayment of fees. Meanwhile, Mr. Mfouna acknowledged spending $2 a day on alcohol and cigarettes.

This pattern of behavior is common across the third word.  A study by economists at MIT discovered:

the world’s poor typically spend about 2 percent of their income educating their children, and often larger percentages on alcohol and tobacco: 4 percent in rural Papua New Guinea, 6 percent in Indonesia, 8 percent in Mexico. The indigent also spend significant sums on soft drinks, prostitution and extravagant festivals.

This belies the claim that ‘imperialism’ and ‘colonialism’ are to blame for the troubles in Africa and the rest of the third world.  Ethiopia, which was never colonized, shares the same troubles as the rest of Africa.  Hong Kong, Singapore and Ireland, which were British colonies well into the 20th century, are among some of the most prosperous societies on the planet.

The fact is that attitudes and behavior, which are generally derived from the culture one grows up in, are the determinative factor in success.  One can even see this in certain segments of the population living in America.  Many communities at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder, especially the urban poor, mirror Africa and the rest of the third world: large amounts of money are spent on alcohol, drugs, and cigarettes, while other needs are ignored.  The only thing granting them a better lifestyle than Mr. Obamza’s family in the Congo Republic is that America is a wealthy country and able to pay out large sums of welfare.

The U.S government has to practically babysit the welfare recipients in this country to ensure that they actually spend their money on food and rent; not drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes.  The government created an entire rental assistance program bureaucracy called ‘Section 8’ which issues ‘rental vouchers,’ because they can’t trust welfare recipients to actually spend the money on rent instead of drugs.  Furthermore, the government (usually local housing authorities) has to inspect the rental properties periodically, because apparently the recipients can’t be trusted to find housing which is up to standard.  The government has to issue ‘food stamps’ instead of cash to ensure that poor Americans actually spend their money on food instead of drugs, although in many cases the recipients sell some or all of their ‘food stamps’ for half price on the black market in order to get cash to pay for drugs.  The most tedious program of all, WIC (‘Women, Infants, and Children’) actually spells out a grocery shopping list line by line for the recipients.  A certain amount of milk, a certain amount of fresh fruit, etc, each appear on a line of the voucher, along with an expiration date to ensure they actually use buy groceries on a regular basis.

The lack of value on education and oversize expenditures on wasteful products such as drugs and entertainment in lieu of necessities seems to be part of an overall cultural lack of thinking and planning ahead.  The same MIT study which discovered much of the world’s poor spending multiple times the amount of money on alcohol, cigarettes, and festivals as they spend on education also discovered that they neglected to save their money, even when they were able to and it would greatly help them out in the near future, concluding that “they could easily save more without getting less nutrition, by spending less on alcohol, tobacco, festivals, and food items such as sugar, spice, and tea.”  Take this example on fertilizer use in Kenya for example:

According to surveys conducted over several years, just 40.3 percent of farmers had ever used fertilizer, and just 25 percent used fertilizer in any given year. Conservative estimates suggest that the average return to using fertilizer exceed 100 percent, and the median return is above 75 percent. Duflo, Kremer, and Robinson conducted field trials of fertilizer on the farms of actual randomly selected farmers, which were meant to teach the farmers how to use fertilizer and the rewards of doing so. They found that the farmers who participated in the study are 10 percent more likely on average to use fertilizer in the very next season after the study, but only 10 percent more likely – and the effects fade after the first season.

When farmers were asked why they did not use fertilizer, most farmers replied that they

did not have enough money. However, fertilizer can be purchased (and used) in small

quantities, so this is another investment opportunity which seems easily accessible to farmers with even a small level of saving. This suggests that the issue, once again, is that farmers find it difficult to put away even small sums of money. The program in Kenya offered to sell farmers a voucher right after the harvest, which is when farmers have money in hand, which would entitle them to buy fertilizer later.

This program had a large effect: 39 percent of the farmers offered the voucher bought

the fertilizer, and the effects are as large as a 50 percent subsidy on the cost of fertilizer. The voucher seemed to work as a commitment device to encourage saving. But what remains puzzling is that the farmers could have bought the fertilizer in advance on their own. Indeed, a huge majority of the farmers who bought the vouchers for future delivery of fertilizer requested immediate delivery, and then stored the fertilizer for later use. Moreover almost all of them used the fertilizer they bought. They apparently had no self-control problems in keeping the fertilizer, even though they could easily exchange the fertilizer for something more immediately consumable. Indeed, even if there were some transaction costs in selling, they would have to be very large indeed, given that these are people appear to be are willing to give up a 100 percent return in a three to five months in order to consume now.

Unfortunately for America, the traditional Western notions of saving and working hard are becoming less common.  Part of this is the takeover of our education system and domination of the media by the far Left, and part of it is the importation of people with third world cultural values, who, contrary to liberal claims, are not adopting American values for the most part.

A teacher at Lumpkin County High School in North Georgia has been suspended after she let a group of White students in her AP History class dress up in Ku Klux Klan garb for a film project. The video the students were shooting was about the "history of racism." The students were escorted through the cafeteria during lunch and black and mixed race students were offended by their attire.

A small tempest in a teacup about "racism" has followed in the wake. The NAACP has gotten involved and expressed their usual shock and outrage. The teacher has apologized for the incident, but could still possibly be fired. Locals have called it a "a big to-do about nothing" and "political correctness gone crazy."

Clearly, there was no malicious intent here. The students involved were not celebrating the Ku Ku Klan. They were trying to depict its atrocities. Their AP History teacher obviously thought it would be a good exercise in white guilt over racism and slavery. The KKK was topical to Georgia history and the project would have been an opportune time to initiate Attorney General Eric Holder's much desired "conversation about race."

Catherine Ariemma was trying to improve race relations, not poison them, but even that level of humility no longer cuts the mustard with the PC Left. Whites + KKK - Indispensable Context = Racism = Recipe for National Controversy.

In other news, 1 out of 5 Georgia public schools has been accused of tampering with student test scores on standardized tests. 58 of the 191 schools under investigation are in the predominantly black Atlanta metropolitan area. 69% of Atlanta elementary and middle schools are being probed for possible tampering. The credibility of the state education system is in shambles and black students are the worst off because of it.

But no ... the real story in America is a well intentioned, highly talented Georgia teacher who made a racial faux pas in an AP History class, not the fraud and incompetence going on in Atlanta's failing public schools, which will likely have severe long term consequences for the state. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton can't so easily beat their chests, organize boycotts, and march about that one.

It is just another day in American under multiculturalism.