Category Archives: Political philosophy

Rules for Radicals is the book written by Saul Alinsky, the man who Chris Matthews referred to as “one of our heroes”. Random Thots has just published a review of Rules for Radicals which you can access at the Book Reviews sidebar on our Homepage. What follows here is commentary on factors surrounding the book. Go to the review if you wish to read about the book itself.

Alinsky has been called the founder of modern community organizing. He set up activist organizations and trained their members to follow his methods. The man and his work are pertinent today because Alinsky played a significant part in the early lives of our current President and our current Secretary of State.

No one, including Saul Alinsky himself, would dispute that he was a radical. He reveled in it. His teachings were aimed at how best to bring down a government, in this case the United States government,  to pave the way for a Marxist replacement. We have good reason to explore the fascination Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama had with Saul Alinsky

In some circles much is made of the fact the three were Chicago centric. So was Milton Friedman, it’s irrelevant. Hillary Clinton chose Saul Alinsky as the subject of her thesis at Wellesley College. That could be interesting. When the Clinton clan aspired to move from the Ozarks to DC, Hillary Clinton asked Wellesley to secure her thesis from public access. Wellesley complied, though no such request had ever been honored before.

But you can read the actual thesis here, courtesy of Random Thots. Read through it if you wish. There is nothing in it that merits condemnation. Miss Rodham’s interest in Alinsky’s work was academic, a fascination with a significant figure within the sphere of what she foresaw as her future. Alinsky was aware of her study and offered her a job. Hillary turned him down.

By the time young Obama was recognized as worthy of a leadership role Saul had died. But those carrying on his work invited Barack to join them, and he accepted. It was before his time at Harvard. Obama underwent training with the Industrial Areas Foundation, an organization Alinsky founded in 1940, and which carries on his legacy today. Thus began the community organizing that Obama so often quoted as a qualifying factor in his quest for the Presidency.

ACORN has been referred to as a spawn of Alinsky. I have found no direct connection between ACORN and Alinsky, however as Charlotte Allen reported in The Weekly Standard “ACORN’s founders certainly had Alinsky’s principles in mind when they founded the organization in 1970”.

When you put all we know about Obama together, his embracing of Marxist Liberation Theology, launching his political career from the home of William Ayers, siding with the Socialists in matters involving Argentina and Honduras, quasi nationalization of members of the automotive and financial industries, and a hell-bent-for-leather drive to expand government, one could reasonably assume Obama is a true believer.

That also seems to be the conclusion of T David Alinsky, son of Saul. In September of 2008 The Canada Free Press reported:

In Artful Dodger style, Barack Obama, plays down his mentorship with Communist author Saul Alinsky. But Alinsky’s son, L. David Alinsky, credits Obama for “learning his lesson well” from the Communist guru.

Indeed, Alinsky Jr. who credits his late father for the success of last week’s Democratic National Convention may have done something that Obama’s detractors couldn’t: blown the cover on the presidential hopeful’s communist leanings.

Says Alinsky’s son L. David Alinsky of his father’s influence at the Dem Convention: “ALL the elements were present: the individual stories told by real people of their situation and hardships, the packed-to-the rafters crowd, the crowd’s chanting of key phrases and names, the action on the spot of texting and phoning to show instant support and commitment to jump into the political battle, the rallying selections of music, the setting of the agenda by the power people.”

“The Democratic National Convention had all the elements of the perfectly organized event, Saul Alinsky style, the Communist guru’s son wrote in a letter published yesterday in the Boston Globe.

Reading Rules for Radicals will provide the reader with greater understanding of Obama’s methods and insight into what his goals may or may not be, essential knowledge every voter should have.