Preface For A Southern Blockbuster

 by Al Benson Jr.

Member, Board of Directors, Confederate Society of America

I received a Christmas present yesterday that I deeply appreciate. It was a copy of Ron and Donnie Kennedy's third and updated edition of their blockbuster book The South Was Right!  It had previously been published in 1991 and in 1994. The 1994 edition sold well over 100,000 copies. This new 2020 edition will hopefully do as well. It has been updated so that it reflects exactly where we are, both in the Southern Heritage Movement and in the country at large.

My comments today will deal only with the preface to the new 2020 edition. A full book review will come later as I get into the real meat of the book. But as I sat on Christmas morning and read the preface I felt that it, by itself, deserved some comments as it shows how our leftist adversaries have changed their tactics against us since 1994 and many of us, myself sometimes included, have opposed them still using the same tactics we used over twenty five years ago. Is it any wonder we are losing?

I will quote the Kennedy Brothers here because what they have to say is so relevant. They observe: "Since the 1994 publication of the second edition of The South Was Right an evil, neo-Marxist shadow government has taken control of the United States. The evil, shadow government consists of leftist ideologues in the media, academia, political establishment, and their donor-class supporters both in the North and the South. With the fall of the old Communist world, Marxism changed its form but not its objectives. Neo-Marxists, composed of liberals, progressives, socialists, and other social justice warriors, replaced the older form of Marxism. Today, 2020, they dominate diverse  organizations such as the mainline media, digital media, Black  Lives Matter, ANTIFA, and other left-of-center organizations." So Marxism has taken on a whole new complexion at this point in time. The question for us is--have we kept pace with them? I'm afraid, at this point, that's doubtful.

The Kennedys continue: "Everything associated with the traditional, conservative, Bible-Belt South has been demonized by the evil, leftist shadow government that now controls America's social and political thinking. Evidence of the effectiveness of this evil, neo-Marxist shadow government can be seen in a 2020 opinion poll. The poll documented that most (77%) conservatives are afraid to openly express their political opinions.  The America where freedom of speech and freedom of expression is a Constitutionally protected right no longer exists!  This evil, leftist shadow government serves as the propaganda center that supports the Yankee Empire's genocidal policy toward its captive nation--the Confederate States of America. The old North/South bargain or detente where the South agreed to remain passive and patriotic and not attempt to secede again in exchange for nominal control of our local, puppet governments--that agreement has been broken.  We did not break the agreement,  they broke it!  This third edition explains how it happened, but more importantly it explains what the people of the occupied South can do about it."

They tell us: "National Republican politicians cower before the demands of this evil, neo-Marxist shadow government, while national Democrats provide political cover for the left-of-center shadow government's riotous storm troopers. America's once 'free press' is now controlled by postmodern, neo-Marxists who maintain monopolistic control of public information. The mainline and digital media serve as the evil shadow government's ministry of propaganda. These people are ideologically driven, they detest traditional Western Christian civilizations definition of truth, civility, and due process under the law...The cultural genocide directed against all things Southern that we warned was coming in 1994 has now arrived. Today Southerners are the only minority who are forced to allow our enemies to define our culture....We are in the same position as people of all other captive nations. The people of the South, Dixie, or the Bible-Belt are in a struggle for our very survival as a unique people The following questions remain--'Do Southerners still posses the courage to take their stand in Dixie? Do Southerners have the backbone necessary to establish their own provisional government in each state to bring pressure on 'our' wobbly  weak-kneed politicians?" 

There will be more about provisional and shadow governments in the book and for those who might not have a copy of it you can try to get a copy of Ron Kennedy's book Dixie Rising--Rules for Rebels. Ron deals with shadow governments in the South in that book also. It is time we updated our response to those Marxist types that seek to destroy us as a distinct people and who seek to destroy this country as a whole. 

The leftists label us a "reactionaries" because we mostly react to what they try to do to us. It's time we started being proactive rather than reactive and this new edition of The South Was Right! should help us to begin to do that. More on this as I get into the book.

A "Bully Pulpit" For Louisiana--And by extention for the rest of the South

 A "Bully Pulpit" For Louisiana--And by extension for the rest of the South

by Al Benson Jr.

Member, Board of Directors, Confederate Society of America

Recently someone handed me a pamphlet which I found interesting and which I will quote from extensively in this article. It took information out of the book by Ron Kennedy  Dixie Rising--Rules for Rebels that may be helpful to those struggling to preserve our culture, heritage and history here in the South where it is under unrelenting attack by the Marxists that seek our cultural destruction. 

The pamphlet observed that "...the Bully Pulpit is a state-wide elected office in which the incumbent uses the prestige of the office  to advance the cause of Southern and American Constitutional liberty. The office holder becomes the spokesman  for the Cause not only in his state but across the South and the nation. He is central in organizing pro-liberty folks in every Southern state. By virtue of hs office, he generates public knowledge and enthusiasm for our Cause.."

When you look at the way leftist Democrats and Republicans and other assorted Marxists have trashed our history and culture in recent years you realize that something of this sort is sorely needed. Someone with official political standing needs to be there to speak up for Southern Heritage folks who have no political power or voice of their own.

The pamphlet notes: "Only power can counter power. They (the Marxists) have power, we do not. One person in a Bully Pulpit could arouse the general public to forceful political action. Southerners will follow a strong leader who uses his Bully Pulpit to organize a mass movement; a leader who has developed a strategic plan to defeat the neo-Marxist mobs  and replace the current illegitimate, supreme federal government  with a Constitutional Republic of Sovereign States secured by real States' Rights inclusive of the rights of state nullification and secession."

The person in the Bully Pulpit has to be one of us ordinary folks, and not a career politician looking to feather his future political nest and therefore willing to sell out to the highest bidder. He needs to be someone who is willing to spend a good part of his time defending the Cause rather than the political eggs in his basket.

The pamphlet states that this person "...must understand the necessity of using irregular political warfare to unseat the political status quo--a system that is designed to favor the ruling elites, while holding 'we the people' in check and under their control." This becomes especially important at a time when we risk having our national election stolen from us via massive fraud.

Dixie Rising Rules for Rebels states the following: "Consider the impact on recruiting of new supporters and members that the Bully Pulpit would have. Assume that we elect one of our own as Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana. In Louisiana, the Lt. Governor has almost no real duties and would therefore have plenty of time to travel across the South and otherwise promote our Cause. For example; if a Southern scholar or author were to be invited to speak to a gathering in Columbia, South Carolina, it would cause very little public notice. But if the Lt. Governor of Louisiana comes to town that would make a noticeable public impact. More people would attend the meeting; more people would be encouraged to support the Cause and the news media would report on the event." They might try to report negatively on it but they would have to cover it, much as they might hate to do so.

The pamphlet continues: "More detained information about the Bully Pulpit, irregular political warfare, Provisional Government, South-wide ballot initiatives, and our Sovereign State Amendment to the US Constitution can be found in the second edition (2020) Dixie Rising--Rules for Rebels   Shotwell Publishing, Columbia, South Carolina. Our aim is not just to win an election--our aim is to win our Freedom."

Even In Lincoln's Day Some Folks Recognized A Communist

by Al Benson Jr.

Member, Board of Directors, Confederate Society of America

Awhile back I printed off an article from https://www.jacobinmag.com by an Andre Fleche called America's First Red Scare. The article seemed to me to be a mix of truth and error and Mr. Fleche's somewhat left of center bias seemed to show through.

But he did get some things right. He noted: "Advocates from both sides argued their case in print and in public. Conservative newspapers warned Missouri's citizens to beware of heeding the advice of 'scarlet red speakers.' Good advice, for there were quite a few of those around even then. Contrary to what we have been taught, communism and socialism were problems in this country starting at least in the early 1850s and not in the 1950s as we have been told in what passes for history books today. 

Fleche continued: "Slaveholders denounced abolitionists, immigrants, and activists as 'Pure red republicans! People rotten from the ground up, red all the way through to their kidneys'." That is true, but it was not only slaveholders that exposed them

Fleche observed that St. Louis Unionists armed themselves in order to prevent Missouri from seceding. He said: "Progressive Republicans, soldiers, and the German immigrant community took the lead. Revolutionary veterans from Europe, including such radicals as Heinrich Bornstein, editor of the St. Louis German language newspaper Anzeiger des Westens, played a prominent role in helping to organize the new Union volunteers." Notice Fleche's terminology here. "Progressive Republicans" Folks, that's just another term for socialist Republicans--the same kind of RINO's today that are willing to help the Democrats to try to defraud Trump of his legitimate vote count in the 2020 election.

Fleche's leftist bias bleeds through in his next comments. He tells us that "On May 10, 1861, the loyal regiments marched to the outskirts of town where they dispersed and disarmed a gathering of secessionist militias. As the victorious units marched their captives back through the city, radical journalists likened the scene to the revolution that had swept Europe in 1848."  One of them wrote: "It was one of those splendid moments when emotion glowing deep in the heart of the masses suddenly breaks into wild flame." The captured Confederates took a little different view. They said "These reds and forty-eighters are to blame for everything." This according to one conservative editor--and he was pretty close to the actual truth there.

Fleche contended that Southern secession  tried first and foremost to protect slavery in the South, which was a misnomer because Southerners could have stayed in the Union and still kept their slaves. Lincoln said as much. The second part of his contention was a little more accurate. He noted that "...by establishing a Southern nation, Confederates also sought to forestall progressive political and social change, which they believed threatened to transform the American republic."

Fleche observed, correctly, that "In the years before the Civil War, white Southern intellectuals grew increasingly worried about progressive Northern thinkers.  During the 1840s and 1850s, Northern reformers had advocated not only abolitionism, but also working-class trade unionism and utopian socialism. The Yankee editor, Horace Greeley  took the lead in popularizing radical politics. In the pages of his widely read newspaper, the New York Tribune, he exposed readers to the latest work of contemporary social theorists." One of those "contemporary social theorists" was Karl Marx, the supposed founder of present day communism. But, then,  Greeley was, himself, a socialist. I have on my shelf a book by Charles Sotheran called Horace Greeley  And Other Pioneers Of American Socialism. It was first published in 1915 and then again in 1971 by Haskell House Publishers in New York. I'm not sure if it's even still available. 

Greeley wasn't the only socialist around back in the day. There were lots of them around, lots earlier than we'd like to think.

And there were even some similarities with our situation today. In Missouri, many of the radical Unionists were in the city of St. Louis, while much the rest of Missouri was pretty conservative. How well does that pattern hold true today, not only in Missouri but in many of our other states as well. You have conservatives and patriots in the more rural areas of the state but the big cities are mostly, with some exceptions, socialistic politically. Same when it comes to elections. The big cities usually vote socialist while the rest of the state votes conservative. I know it works that way in Louisiana. And it did in Illinois and Indiana when we were there.

Years ago Dr. Clyde Wilson wrote an informative series of columns called The Yankee Problem in America. He was right. I don't recall if Dr. Wilson ever wrote a book by that title or not. He may have. Problem is, a lot of those Yankees that have been such a problem have also been socialists, and therein lies part of the problem.

Liberty Flags of our Fathers--The Confederate Battle Flag

 by Al Benson Jr.

Thanks to the professional South haters, both Democrats and Republicans, as well as the Marxist-oriented media and various Marxist groups the Confederate Battle Flag has gotten an undeserved bad rap. Any place the Battle Flag has been flown in the South in our day Southern scalawags have rushed in to attempt to remove it so they can display their utter obeisance to those that they think will further their political aspirations.

Admittedly, there have been some groups that have used the flag in an abusive manner, but such groups do not in any way reflect the true and noble heritage of the Battle Flag. Shallow thinkers contend that the Battle Flag represents slavery. Too often they refuse to learn the real history because to be confused with the facts might mean they had to retreat from their unjust criticisms and they are not about to do that. Life would have no meaning for them if they did.

The Battle Flag was only, ever, a soldier's flag, used by Confederate soldiers on the field of battle so as to differentiate their flags from the Yankee flags. It did not represent slavery because your average Confederate soldier did not fight to preserve or defend slavery. Their letters to their folks back home showed that. They fought to defend their God-given liberties and because they were invaded. A Confederate soldier was once asked why he fought the Yankees and his reply was "because you're here."

There has been much ado made over the origins of the Battle Flag. Many have said it had a religious origin while others have rushed in to stridently deny that. In the Southern Heritage Movement since I have been involved in it there have been two distinct groups--those who insist the the Movement and Confederate flags have a decided Christian origin and the opposing group that wants to leave any religious connection of the Confederacy out totally. I once had a shallow-thinking young man tell me "I  am fighting for a flag, not a religion." He seemed to take some pride in that statement. He did not seem to grasp the fact that the flag he was "fighting for" had a religious significance and, had it not had that significance it would not have existed.

You may have guessed by now that I do not agree with those deniers that claim there was no religious significance to our flags or that they were totally secular. If the design of the Battle Flag was totally secular as some claim then why did it contain the St. Andrews Cross, which was and is a Christian symbol, the same as the one on the Scottish national flag? The St. Andrews Cross reflects the Celtic heritage of many in the South and many of those were and are today, Christian.

Pastor John Weaver wrote a book on why the Confederate Battle Flag was Christian in origin. He has been criticized for that effort by many who contend a totally secular view of the flag is mandated. I have seen some of Pastor Weaver's writing on this subject. I don't know if he got all the historical facts totally right or not. But by the same token, I don't think he got them all totally wrong either.

In my opinion I think the Confederate Battle Flag did, indeed, have a spiritual significance. Whether intended or not, it contained a powerful Christian symbol and I think this is one reason the political and theological leftists in our day hate it so much. They realize what many secular Southerners do not--that this flag is, indeed, a Christian symbol and seeing that I have two ancestors that were Scots Highlanders I recognize that also.

For all its imperfections the Old South was a biblically-based society and culture and I am convinced that is one reason why its history and heritage are under such virulent attack in our day. The politicians and other gutless wonders in Mississippi have just removed the Confederate symbol from their state flag. They were afraid to give the good citizens of their state a chance to have a referendum on whether they wanted this done or not. They just did it on their own. The citizens of Mississippi should remember that when these people run for office again.

The Confederate Battle Flag does not represent what its detractors claim it does. It represents the aspirations of those soldiers that fought for their liberties under its banner. As such it should always have a place of respect in our hearts and minds no matter what the world tries to tell us about it.

White Privilege--Is it really Red?

 by Al Benson Jr.

Member, Board of Directors, Confederate Society of America

Recently I saw an article dealing with how the University of Minnesota plans to deal with what they consider is the main problem in the country today, "white privilege." Seeing that most university's  and colleges in our day are dominated by Marxists of one stripe or another this should not be all that surprising. 

The university is offering a 12-step program for Recovery from whiteness.  Some of the steps are rather "interesting."  Step one is We admitted that we have been socially conditioned by the ideology of white supremacy. Step 9 is We develop strategies to counteract our racial biases, and step 11 is We engage in daily practices of self-reflection.  Sounds like something straight out of Mao's cultural revolution, and that's not really too far off base. You have to realize that as with many Marxist programs it is only a matter of time before they make it to our college campuses.

Self-criticism programs have been a hallmark of Marxist ideology for decades. Kyle Shideler has written on https://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org that "After 9/11, American citizens were encouraged by leftists to ask 'Why do they hate us?' Today the same people, trained by years of victim-blaming to hold themselves accountable for terrorism both foreign and domestic are asking a similar question.  'What flaws in ourselves makes these nice mobs so angry?'  The approved answer seems to be 'because of our white privilege, which must be dismantled.'"

So roving Marxist groups of Antifa and Black Lives Matter pillage and burn our cities and, somehow, that is our fault because of our "white privilege." The folks that really believe this have to be soft in the head. The people that fund and promote this Marxist terrorism don't believe this croc. They know better and part of their agenda is to make sure, via our managed media, that you don't find out the truth. Get over the fable that there is such a thing as the "news" media out there anymore. Most of what we still call journalists are little more than comrades for the Marxists. There are some exceptions but they are fewer and more hard to find as time goes on.

Shideler notes an organization called The National Museum of African American History and Culture, which is funded by American tax dollars. This outfit basically says that whites have most of the political power and economic power in this country and that all this is basically known as white privilege. Apparently if you are a white American it has all been easy street for you. So for all those black folks I know that drive newer cars then mine  and live in fancier homes than I do, they are all victims of my white privilege. Right? Honestly, folks, do you really believe this tripe? If you do then the Marxists have penetrated your thinking. You've been watching too much of CNN or MSNBC.

Shideler noted that the various socialist groups that had agitated for decades in this country had failed to procure the revolution they desired. Some of them finally came up with the theory that "their problem was a lack of racial rather than class, consciousness which held back Marxist organizing in America."

He observed that "From his experience working to educate the working class about Communism, and drawing from the work of W.E.B. DuBois, Theodore Allen, a Communist Party member, finally hit on something. "He became convinced that the 'white working class' would never be compelled to rebel so long as they accepted 'white-skin privilege, which the capitalist system had evolved as an artificial but deeply-rooted method of control to divide the white working class from the black working class, preventing a united proletariat."

Also observed by Shideler was that: "Allen's partner in this effort and another leading theorist on 'White skin privilege was another former Communist Party member Noel Ignatiev..." I have written about both of these sterling individuals in the past, not recently, but a few years back. I knew Allen was a Communist. I wasn't sure about Ignatiev at that time. I should have known. He was writing about how horrible it was to be white over a decade ago that I remember.

These abbreviated comments should give you some idea of where the current craze over white privilege really comes from. It did not originate on the college campus. It was transported there  by those Marxist personalities who seek to subvert the thinking of your kids.

Liberty Flags of our Fathers--The Bonnie Blue Flag

 by Al Benson Jr.

Most Southern patriots are familiar with the Bonne Blue Flag and the song that goes along with it. For a long time I had a Bonnie Blue Flag flying at my house.

The history of that flag goes all the way back to the early 1800s all the way back to when Spain and France had a disagreement as to whether West Florida was included in the area each country claimed. When Thomas Jefferson made the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 he sort of inherited the debate. The inhabitants of West Florida were mostly people that spoke English and they were not real happy with either France or Spain, neither of which could deal with them in English.

A revolt took place in West Florida in 1803, led by the three Kemper Brothers. And while it was not successful, it told the Spanish they had better start taking the English-speaking folks in West Florida a bit more seriously. So Spain started dribbling out a few more liberties to them. A second revolt ensued in 1810, led by a Major Isaac Johnson He led a march to the capital in Baton Rouge, which was captured in late September of that year. A new flag was then raised over the fort there, which consisted of a single white star on a field of dark  blue. Shortly afterward a Declaration of Independence was passed and the Republic of West Florida came into being. The same flag was then adopted as their national flag.

The Republic was rather short-lived. In late October U. S. President James Madison proclaimed that West Florida was, in reality, part of the Louisiana Territory. The U. S. flag was then raised over the fort, but, by this juncture, the  image of the Bonnie Blue Flag had burned itself into the memories of  the Southern folks in that area as a symbol of liberty.

When the Republic of Texas came into being a similar flag was adopted, with Texas still being known as the Lone Star State. And in January of 1861, when Mississippi seceded from the Union and established the Republic of Mississippi, another blue flag with a single star was raised in Jackson.

In the audience at that event in Jackson was an Irish actor named Harry McCarthy. He was inspired to compose lyrics pertaining to the flag and he set them to a tune from where he was born. He called his turn The Bonnie Blue Flag. 

Some say this became the first flag of The Confederate States, but there is some debate over that. Whether it was accurate or not, the Bonnie Blue became, at least, an unofficial Confederate flag and still is today. The lyrics of McCarthy's tune are still enough, even today, to stir the hearts of Southern patriots. If you want to see or hear the words of the song just go on the net and type in Lyrics for the Bonnie Blue Flag into a search engine. You will probably find several different videos or sets of lyrics for the tune.

The Liberty Flags Of Our Fathers

Am doing a series of articles on the liberty flags of our fathers, those flags that were symbols of our God-given liberty, flags we all remember and revere. The fact that many of these flags are under virulent assault in our day should tell us that our history and culture as well as our liberty are also under assault. We had better wake up and realize this, lest we end up forfeiting, through our complacency, the legacy God has bequeathed to us, an action, or lack thereof, for which we shall be judged.

What better place to start than with the Betsy Ross Flag? This is, after all, the flag that professional America hater Colin Kaepernick, formerly of the National Football League, loves to hate. That fact in itself should commend it to us. Here is a guy who can't even bring himself to stand for the National Anthem or the flag, and our kids are supposed to emulate him? Please give me a break!

Back in July, 2019, I read an article on www.newsweek.com about Comrade Kaepernick's reaction to a new tennis shoe that NIKE was going to put out with the Betsy Ross Flag displayed on the shoes. This incensed Kaepernick no end and he said he had a problem because the flag was "...offensive due to its connection to the United States slavery era." This according to the Wall Street Journal. If this is accurate, then I suppose that every American symbol before the slaves were emancipated in late 1865 is a problem for Kaepernick and others of his ilk. So let's get rid of all the  pictures of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson because, after all, they were slave owners. Do you begin to see how ludicrous this sort of specious reasoning is? In other words, everything and everyone in America was evil before December of 1865, which includes Abraham Lincoln, because the slaves were not really freed until after he had been dead for several months.

In doing research on our flags, you'd be surprised how many "historians" claim almost no authenticity for any of them. The Newsweek article was typical of this. It said: "While general perception has held Ross was solely responsible for designing the flag, some scholars have suggested she was just one of many seamstresses in Pennsylvania at the time that took part in the project." What scholars? Newsweek doesn't reveal this "fact."

Betsy Ross was born Elizabeth Griscom in January of 1752 to a Quaker family. She was apprenticed to an upholsterer when she was 17,and sometime thereafter, she met John Ross, also an apprentice and an Anglican, with whom she fell in love. As a Quaker she couldn't marry outside her faith and so was expelled from her local Quaker meeting. But, on her own, she and her husband opened an upholstery business.

John passed away in 1776 due to an accident and so Betsy continued the upholstery business on her own. She made flags for Pennsylvania and the American Revolution. According to one source, "..she was paid 14 pounds in 1777 for making 'ship colours for the Pennsylvania State Navy Board."

Betsy remarried twice and was widowed both times. She lived to be 84 years old, but the story about the first American flag she made wasn't made public until almost 50 years after she died. William Canby was Betsy's grandson and he  first told the story of  the Betsy Ross Flag to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in 1870. According to William, Betsy made the first American flag "...in the spring of 1776 following a visit from General George Washington , Robert Morris, and  her husband's uncle, Colonel George Ross. During the visit, the men allegedly showed Betsy a sketch of a flag containing thirteen red and white stripes and 6-pointed white stars, and asked if she could make it. Betsy accepted the offer, but suggested changing the 6-pointed stars to easier 5-pointed stars and arranging them in a circle--the very same design that was officially adopted by Congress one year later on June 14, 1777." This account was supported by affidavits from Betsy's daughter, niece and granddaughter, and thus the  "story of the Betsy Ross Flag became forever stitched into the fabric of American history."

This is the flag you saw Mel Gibson carry in the movie The Patriot and it is a beautiful flag, symbolic of our liberty--which is why those on the left seem to hate it so much.

Deep State Insider Spills the Beans!

https://thecopperhead.blogspot.com

The Coming Rebellion, Civil War and Balkanization of the United States