Few people realize that the term slave has its origins in the word slav. The Slavs, who inhabited a large part of Eastern Europe, were taken as slaves by the Muslims of Spain during the ninth century A.D. In Arabic, the word for slave is s’qaliba; in Greek, it’s sklavos. You don’t have to be an etymologist to know the origin for these words.
The reality is the ownership of other human beings is not unique to black African Americans. It is part of the history of every race and there examples of it even within our own country. Though some would argue that the indentured servitude of the Irish, for example, was not “slavery,” few would go so far as to suggest they weren’t treated just as poorly under identical circumstances for the same reasons. They were.
According to anecdotal information from the Antebellum period, whenever back-breaking labor was involved in the docks of Baltimore or New Orleans, white immigrants were usually preferred over black men because owners had an “investment” in black slaves that they didn’t want to waste. So, yeah, white people were often treated as slaves. And not all black people in America were slaves. (Nor should we forget that the Ashanti nation of Africa became one of the wealthiest peoples on earth because of their very lucrative involvement in the slave trade.)
Making the distinction that indentured servants were considered human beings under the law and African slaves were not does not hold water. Both were treated execrably. As with most things, the truth is not nearly as pristine, as some were free and some were not. (https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5386&context=faculty_scholarship)
What is true, however, is that having a particular skin color is not a criteria for determining who was and was not a descendant of the deplorable condition known as “slavery”, i.e. the buying and selling of human beings.
Nor should it be used as an excuse for treating other people poorly. We have become modern “slaves” to a myth that justifies looting, violence and anti-social behavior that is threatening the very fabric of our nation. Don’t believe me? The CEO of Chick-fil-A, Dan Cathy, yesterday said that we shouldn’t focus too much on the physical destruction of property (this, after several of his own stores were demolished!). Instead, we must consider the fee-fees of the rioters. And then he got down on his knees and shined the shoes of some black celebrity he was sitting next to.
This is nothing less than insanity. Real slaves had real masters to whom they had to answer –or suffer physical consequences. Cathy is a slave to a delusion; an unreality. His master is a phantom. Still, he is very much a slave; he is also a damn fool.
As Father Joseph Gleason points out below, this doesn’t have to be the case and isn’t the case in the Church. Please take the time to read it.
[Editor Note: Something strange happened to this post. The author of this excellent piece is Father Joseph Gleason, not Father Patrick Gleason.]
Alright. So, we need to talk about race, about judging people merely because of their skin color. I’m an Orthodox priest, and I admit that I’ve been a really slow learner, but with all the recent events, I have finally seen the light. This is a very serious issue, and I now realize that I have not done enough — personally — to fight against it.
Slavery was widespread, until is was abolished in the 1860s. And today, there are millions of people who are descendants of these slaves. Literally millions of them, today, are members of the Orthodox Church.
We also need to remember, in history, how many Saints of the Orthodox Church have been slaves. These are godly Christian people who endured the abuse and humiliation of slavery, suffering for years under the lashes of hard taskmasters. Yet they did not condemn. They did not complain. They faithfully and humbly followed Christ, not expecting to receive their reward here on earth, knowing that their full reward would only be received later, at the Resurrection.
These Orthodox Saints who were slaves, and also the millions of Orthodox Christians today who are descendants of slaves, are our brothers and sisters. They are part of the Body of Christ. So we have to stop treating them like second-class citizens!
Now, just to be clear, just to make sure I am not misunderstood, it is important for me to point this out: The people I am talking about are white.
You see, slavery was abolished in Russia in the 1860s, four years before it was abolished in America. And prior to that time, literally millions of innocent, white, Christian Russians were subjected to being serfs — slaves.
I have a Russian friend named Irina, who lives in America, and she is the direct descendant of a slave. She said her great-grandmother was valued just slightly less than a young goat. Can you even imagine how humiliating it would be, to know that people valued a goat more highly than they valued your own grandmother? How painful would that be, if you had to deal with that as a part of your own family history?
There are literally millions of people living in Russia today, who are descendants of slaves, just like Irina. We need to show them respect, for even today, they are demonstrating incredible levels of honor, strength, and faith.
- They are building churches, not burning them.
- They are starting businesses, not vandalizing them.
- They are upholding law and order, not making a mockery of it.
- Instead of rioting, they are praying.
- Instead of complaining, they are giving thanks.
- Instead of marching through cities in protests, they are marching around monasteries in cross processions.
- Instead looking for people they can blame, they are looking for people they can help.
- Instead of demanding payments for the past, they are working to build a better future.
- Instead of arrogantly asking other people to get down on their knees and bow down to them, they are the ones bowing their knees to Christ, repenting of their own sins, and following His example.
And the Orthodox Saints who were slaves! There’s St. Andrew of Constantinople, St. Emilianos of Bulgaria, St. Moses the Hungarian, St. Callistus, St. Boniface . . . All of them were slaves.
And St. Patrick!
That’s right . . . the saint loved by Irishmen around the world . . . Every time St. Patrick’s Day rolls around, you are celebrating and honoring a white man who spent years of his life as a slave.
These are the people we honor. These are the people we look up to. They were Christians, they were slaves, and they were white.
So please explain to me, why should I be ashamed of the color of my skin? Why should I apologize for so-called “white privilege”?
- Was it white privilege that drove millions of Russians into serfdom and slavery for hundreds of years?
- Was it white privilege that enslaved the Irish?
- Was it white privilege that made Will Smith one of America’s most highly paid actors today?
- If you look at the twenty highest paid professional athletes in the world, the majority of them are black. Is that because of white privilege?
- According to the U.S. Department of Justice, blacks commit violent crimes against whites, far more often than whites commit such crimes against blacks. Is this an example of white privilege?
12% of the American population is black. 11% of Congress is black. 11% of the Supreme Court is black. And during the 41 years of my life so far, 19% of those years have had a black American President. Is this evidence of white privilege?
Was it white privilege that got Ilhan Omar into Congress, Clarence Thomas onto the Supreme Court, and twice got Barack Obama elected as President of the United States?
Was it white privilege that sold blacks into slavery in the first place? No it wasn’t! In Africa, blacks were kidnapping other blacks, and then selling them into slavery.
And which is worse, purchasing, or being the dealer? being a buyer, or being the one who kidnapped them in the first place?
In the drug world, which is worse, a user, or a drug dealer? Being a user is bad, and can get you into trouble. But being a drug dealer is much more serious, and results in a longer prison sentence. So when it comes to slavery, why are we only focusing on the users, while we let the dealers go scott free?
And this — this is one of the many ways you can tell that BLM, as a movement, is either ignorant, or hypocritical. Why aren’t they asking blacks in Africa to get down on their knees, and apologize for their ancestors kidnapping people and selling them into slavery?
Either they are ignorant and don’t know history, or else they do know history, and they are just hypocrites who are covering it up. Which is it?
Because it’s a plain fact — BLM is not demanding anything of blacks in Africa. BLM isn’t telling Africans to get down on their knees, and they aren’t telling them to apologize. The only people they terrorize are whites, and the only reason they do it is because of the color of our skin.
Now, if they start being more consistent, then I may take them a little more seriously. If they start asking African blacks to get on their knees and apologize, then they won’t look so hypocritical when they ask whites to do the same thing.
Just like I said earlier, these Orthodox Saints who were slaves, and also the millions of Orthodox Christians today who are descendants of slaves, are our brothers and sisters. They are part of the Body of Christ. So we have to stop treating them like second-class citizens!
None of the blacks in America today have ever been slaves, and none of the whites in America today have ever owned one. My ancestors lived in Kansas and Michigan, and they never owned slaves. A number of blacks in America are not descended from slaves, because they came to America within the past few decades, long after slavery was abolished. And many whites in America are the descendants of slaves, because many of the whites in America are Slavic immigrants, from Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, and other bordering countries. So are we going to take all of these facts into account, and make it a fair playing field? Or are we just going to keep hating people because they are white, judging them merely because of the color of their skin?
You have nothing to be ashamed of. You have the skin color God gave you. Be grateful! Do not apologize to anyone for your skin color. Do not get on your knees because of your skin color.
Be thankful for the great legacy that has been left over the past 2000 years, by numerous fellow Christians. Millions of them were whites who endured slavery themselves. And many of them even became Saints.
Stand tall, hold your head high, be thankful for this positive legacy, and do not be ashamed.
Because you have nothing to be ashamed of.
You have nothing to apologize for.
https://russian-faith.com/history/orthodox-christian-priest-talks-about-race-n3325
From Robert A Heinlein: “A generation that doesn’t know history has no past; and no future.”
George,
Apologies for the off-topic post. I think you’ve mentioned before that you live in Tulsa – were you able to attend the rally tonight? I was hoping a strong turnout for the president here would go some way towards sending a signal to the Deep State that the populace won’t be cowed.
I was. I plan on writing about my experiences very soon.
I saw some good footage recently:
White Girl (blocking the street as a black girl was trying to get home): “BLM”
Black Girl: “if you really care for black lives then stop voting democrats. Now move!”
WG: “I’m only here for you”
BG: “you only here ’cause you dumb AF”
Outstanding article.
Another thing the Russians can teach us is what a Bolshevik Revolution looks like, because we’re living in one. Ever wonder how Russians could blow up their churches and historic monuments? Just look outside. Every cuckservative who said “Confederate statues should be torn down”, guess what, it’s now Washington and Lincoln too. This is a state supported cultural revolution and I don’t see anyone stopping it.
Not that it couldn’t be stopped. There are plenty of Americans who would go battle with Antifa today. They’re not afraid of them; they’re afraid of the FBI and the police and the DA’s. Your country is being taken from you before your eyes, and they’re telling you to grovel.
No. Thank you Fr. Patrick for giving permission to not consent to this, for those who needed it.
Totally agree with you AS. We, the People could easily take down this mob. What we can’t do is fight them in the front while we’re being stabbed in the back by the DAs, AGs, FBI and who knows who else.
Ask yourself, if we lived in Russia or Georgia or Romania in the last century, what would we ask and expect of our bishops, priests, and fellow Orthodox Christians?
Globalism is International Communism:
1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.
6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev’s promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.
11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.
16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers’ associations. Put the party line in textbooks.18. Gain control of all student newspapers.19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions.
21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to “eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms.”23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. “Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art.”24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them “censorship” and a violation of free speech and free press.** 25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.
** 26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as “normal, natural, healthy.”** 27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with “social” religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a “religious crutch.”28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of “separation of church and state.”29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.** 30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the “common man.”
** 31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the “big picture.” Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture–education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.** 38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.
** 40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.** 41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use [“]united force[“] to solve economic, political or social problems.43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court
Any questions?
Yes, I have a question.
Have we been wrong dismissing the Protocols all these years? They were printed by the librarian of Valaam Monastery, a spiritual child of St. John of Kronstadt who likely gave his blessing for the printing. The publisher is also the first printer of the life of St. Seraphim of Sarov.
In his introduction, the publisher confesses the only true battle against the evils outlined in the Protocols – which look remarkably similar to these Communist Goals – is spiritual warfare – especially Baptism, frequent Confession and the Mysteries – through the Holy Orthodox Church.
Remember, these directives preceded the Communist coup in Russia by many years. And if we substitute ‘Jewish’ with ‘Globalist’ we see a stunning map laid over Orthodox countries, and now the world (especially America).
Have we been wrong dismissing these Protocols?
Fr Seraphim Rose, of blessed memory, has an interesting observation to share:
https://russian-faith.com/history/fr-seraphim-rose-discusses-jewish-question-protocols-zion-n2386
Forgive me.
Yes, we have.
In fact, the first publisher was Sergei Nilus, from Optina Monastery, who was a spiritual child of the Optina Elders of the latter period.
The best argument for the Protocols is: it’s all happened by now.
As for the authenticity of the text, the major argument against the text (that it was lifted from another, earlier, document) is shown up by the fact that the author of the earlier document in question (this part is true) was himself an initiate of one of the subversive secret societies of the late 18th/early 19th century, which itself was a part of the array of groups enmeshed in the web of Judaeo-Masonic intrigue. All it proves is that the agenda has been in place for a long time.
“Ever wonder how Russians could blow up their churches…?”
I’ve always liked how some of the more beautiful Russian cathedrals, especially, weren’t touched, despite the hatred that the Bolshies had for Christianity. God, of course, didn’t allow it, and so I guess the hatred wasn’t as deep as it could have been…at least in some respects…and so not even the Bolshies could bring themselves to it. I’m not sure the same could be said for today, though. My suspicion is that those in the woke west would only be falling over themselves to be the one to flick the switch on a St Basil’s
“Ever wonder how Russians could blow up their churches…?”
Actually, it was Stalin who demolished Christ the Savior Cathedral in 1931. He was Georgian. However, this does not absolve the Russians who took part in other atheistic excursions.
Misha, most of the churches were blown up/demolished in the pre-Stalin years.
And prior to Stalin, who made up the majority of the USSR’s ruling clique, as well as the majority of commissars and CHEKA/NKVD operatives?
Not Russians.
Kaganovich wanted St. Basil’s razed.
Yes. It’s that imagery of CTS which springs to mind. Not saying Russians weren’t to blame for Bolshevism. Church is clear that Russians share the blame for that long dark episode.
Speaking of Slavs, looks like Serbia and Russia are getting cozy again:
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgxAOWxMIBJmiu-u_KF4AaABCQ
Muhammed was a slave owner. Islamic countries have millions of people in slavery to this day. If the rioters who tear down statues of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were sincere, then they should demand all mosques be shut down.
“If the rioters who tear down statues of George Washington
and Thomas Jefferson were sincere…”
If…
Yeah, I’m not going to hold my breath on that one…
All of the Muslim accoutrements hung around and built up alongside Hagia Sophia are symbols of colonialism and oppression. They need to be removed and placed elsewhere.
(NB, if that ever does happen, and if the Pantokrator mosaic isn’t found under the plaster in the middle of the dome, maybe we can play nice and relocate the medallion of Allah there–just to remind the Muslims Who the One God really is)
Well, if the EP does “normalize” the so-called Macedonian church, it will push the Serbs even closer to the Russian church.
What a legacy Bartholomew is leaving in his wake.
I’m surprised crazy Rioters have yet to take down statue of the famous half Black man, Booker T. Washington in Tuskegee campus in Alabama; he was first black man to dine at White House with President Teddy Roosevelt. ??
Teddy Roosevelt was ahead of MLK in treating men on basis of their character + merits. After that dinner he received boatload ⛵️ if condemnations — one of which was infamous poem: “Niggers in the White House”
Oops — forgot to say, Booker T. Washington was for segregation + his views cost him criticism from black activists + the ire of the Harvard educated, civil rights leader W.E. DuBois who believed in the “talented tenth”
Sage-Girl, I see that you are quite knowledgeable about the history of civil rights movement. I wonder how long before it all gets memory-holed.
Me too George,
I worry for truth in history … ???
I’m upset over Teddy Roosevelt statue by Natural History Museum is being taken out + it’s “ok” with Roosevelt family!
Theodore is spinning in his grave that his own great grandchildren sold him out — let me tell ya: TR was very big on showing bravery + standing up to bullies.
?p.s.
Once upon a time, I was Tour Guide at Teddy Roosevelt’s birth home in New York City – boy the furniture there was made for shorter people — I learned much there!
A perspective on BLM that I previously was unaware of. It seems that the lives of blacks is only secondary.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WauUjfQTKMk&t=793s
I think what you’re seeing has nothing to do with slavery, statues, or COVID per se; what you’re seeing is a well-planned, orchestrated process that is intended to weaken the country internally to prepare for military action against her. The signs seem there. From Obama ordering hundreds of millions of dollars of guns and ammo for non-military departments to political leaders conveniently doing nothing and calling for the “abolition of the police,” these events are about moving pieces into place. And now the Bolton book just happens to come out. In the city where I live bottles of gasoline were found throughout neighborhoods. The consensus seems to be that they were there to “frighten us.” No, I don’t think so. I think the order was given to “stand down” this time. Next time, the army hiding in plain sight will have Obama’s weapons, the support of lack-luster politicians and wishy-washy Pentagon types, and help from enemy combatants that have been rumored among us for at least ten years. There will be more unrest and in the midst of it, don’t be surprised if you wake up some morning and see a general giving a press conference from the White House, telling journalists that he is the temporary head of a Provisional Government, active until such time as “constitutional processes can establish a new governing power.” The chain of command will inform local guard units to confiscate weapons “to ensure public safety at this time.” Sound far-fetched? Well, corporate heads, the media, universities, and local political and activist groups have created an unelected parallel governing structure to impose their will on the people. They have effectively run end-round the President. What you’re seeing is a military operation —
Chilling. A sobering assessment.
Sad to say it wouldn’t shock me. The military brass is totally on board with everything gay happening in this country. Obama was very effective in telling generals the score and replacing those who weren’t with the program.
A lot of this protest involved George Soros. The media says we are into conspiracy about the man but he gives millions to any left wing cause. By the way, I think we don’t know how to communicate to young people about the nonsense. The launching of all this goes back to when Obama allow gays to marry. The left jump on the band wagon with other causes since that day.
Stephen, I don’t disagree with you. Much of what you say makes sense.
For the record, I went to the Trump rally yesterday and the President hinted at what his reply would be: the Blue cities are going to be allowed to burn (to which he received thunderous applause). The end-game is for the Blue city mayors and Blue state governors to beg him to send in the National Guard.
Why is he doing this Macchiavelian ploy? Because he knows that the Deep State is goading him into setting things right and they are hoping for a Kent State type of photo which “proves” to the world that he is a butcher. He’s not buying into it.
As for the reports of the rally being a half-attended dud: don’t believe the reports: there were at least 10,000 people there. The only tier where there were empty seats were the top (“nose-bleed”) seats and those were 1/8th full. The bottom two tiers were completely filled. That’s a 19,200 seat arena: I’d say there were at least 11,000 people there. More to follow.
Thank you for the good news.
Orthodox Wisdom has recorded this prayer for America for those that might wish to join:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ewFtykrQxk
Hi George,
I pray you are right. I watched the rally online and heard President Trump say he was letting the left devour itself. He also seemed “back in form.” When the reports started coming in that the numbers were less than expected, I assumed there must be some deeper explanation as to why — now we know: supposedly, the Chinese-owned “tic-toc” facilitated the reservation of tickets for people that never materialized. Somehow, I doubt there are that many teens interested in this. But Chinese bots might be making fake reservations — I’ll await until more information is provided.
As far as letting Blue cities / states burn, I’m of a mind that the purpose is crisis, crisis, crisis. After reading a few books this past year on the Communist putsch in Russia, what we’re seeing now in the US is eerily reminiscent of Russia, circa 1912 – 1916 (?) — at least in my mind. While I wish we had a Stolypin to dispense with the insurrectionists, we have too many Rodziankos, Kerenskys, etc. Just as the Tsar was demonized with “fake news” as liberals in the Duma were calling for the Tsar to first share power and then abdicate, we have Globalists of all stripes calling for Trump to be removed.
Here, I think we’re dealing with a division within the Pentagon and intelligence agencies and at some point, I fear, they will make a more substantial move than they have already. The miscreants in the streets burning and looting are the forward-moving shock troops that are being used to create unrest. I have no proof but it seems possible (likely?) that some of the local mayors, DAs, representatives, etc, are assets for various insurrectionist groups. Keith Ellison has cozied up to Antifa and Soros has funded various DA campaigns so it’s not a stretch to think that there is something more organized that is being leveraged. I can see the quislings in the Pentagon / ABC agencies using the unrest that is likely coming to initiate a confiscation of guns. If the Antifa et. al types take down electrical grids, bridges, or go into neighborhoods next time, lawful gun owners will be left to fend for themselves. If Trump is removed, will they use the Guard to restore order by justifying confiscating guns, while at the same time de-fanging Antifa et. al?
In Russia circa 1917, known Reds — one gunner in Petersburg by the name of Raskolnikov!!! — sowed discord among the army. Who has been training the “vanguard” AR-toting Antifa et. al soy-boy army in CHAZ? Who trained the white insurrectionists shown in multiple videos with ear pieces and communication devices, talking with someone or directing insurgents? Who taught them the techniques in urban warfare involving fires and multiple “flare” sites?
I assume Trump is on top of this and he is waiting for the opportune time to respond. However, I hope we’re not left defending our homes by ourselves. As an Orthodox Christian, I’m not sure I’ve ever heard a Bishop or priest indicate what one should do should this happen — are we to be martyrs or can we defend ourselves, even if this means we lose our lives in the process? I’ve read about what happened in Russia when the NKVD allowed for released criminals to terrorize the people — rapes, horrific tortures and murders. I don’t intend on going down that way. On a final note, I mentioned to my priest three years ago that it was a matter of time before a same-sex couple or trans individual sued the Catholics (or Orthodox) for denying them one of the Mysteries. Now, with the recent court decision, I don’t see how it isn’t simply a matter of time before the Church will find itself in court over this. They are coming after the Church and I’m not sure the Orthodox Bishops have prepared for it or articulated a plan for surviving “above ground” while “in the catacombs.”
Stephen, you are spot-on on all points. Trump did say that he was going to let this thing burn itself out in the Blue, Democrat-governed cities.
That’s cynical and Macchiavellian but he senses a trap. If he sends in the 82nd Airborne to liberate CHAZ or stop the looting in Chicago, we will see a dozen Kent State-type fiascoes happen. And then the military –which unfortunately for them displayed their hand prematurely–will be forced to imprison him because he’s “a threat to democracy”.
As to your thesis about this being like Russia 1916-1917 you are also spot-on. Rod Dreher wrote an excellent piece about something along these lines, entitled “Fleeing the American Imperium”. (https://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/decline-and-fall-fleeing-the-imperium-progressives-benedict-option/ ) I would recommend everybody to read it.
My only quibble is that he sees Trump as being a feckless ruler like Nicholas II. That’s actually wrong on both counts. While Nicholas and Trump were/are surrounded by traitors, Nicholas was unyielding and presided over a lumbering empire built on contradictions. Trump is flexible and willing to make accommodations when necessary and not rise to the bait. Like when Bolton and the neocons wanted him to take out those Iranian jets last year. Everybody on our side thought that Trump was going to pull the trigger but at the very last minute he scotched the operation. Then six months later he took out Gen Solomanieh, an action that literally came out of nowhere.
Nicholas was an autocrat who swore to uphold a conservative society. Trump is a chaos agent who constantly keeps his enemies on their toes. And why not be a chaos agent? There is nothing of traditional America left anyway to “conserve”. If the Left is going to play the Antifa/destructionist game, then what have we on the Right got to lose?
And yes, he did say last night that the game-plan is to let the Blue City mayors burn and thereby force their mayors to “cry uncle”. He also said that while “our side” isn’t “violent” that that may not always be the case.
Stephen, one thing I should have added is that America –like 1916 Russia–is itself an empire built on contradictions. We just aren’t “lumbering” yet.
One of the blessings of COVID/Floyd is that many of these contradictions are now laid bare. So much so that there are only two possibilities for the future: the dichotomy is no longer between Blue or Red Pills but between Red or Black Pills. Basically either a resurgent, Rightist America or Venezuela. The contradictions would be exposed fairly quickly when the BLMers start demanding a greater share of the pie than the other members of the “Coalition of the Fringes”. Hispanics will balk immediately and once Asians pass blacks in numbers, then they will be permanently cast aside. Many black people sense this. There is no sense of collective guilt among the other members of this unstable, volatile, and may I add toxic?, coalition.
Even if the Democrats swept the elections in November, they would be left holding the bag and have to deal with the mess.
George,
This is a good cop, bad cop maneuver, at least in outward appearance. What I predicted back last fall has morphed but still remains operative: The Bloomberg style liberals have seized the nomination in Biden; the Bernistas have taken to the streets. They have split to fight on different fronts but they are still joined in an alliance.
The salon liberals like Biden play good cop as the sensible, moderate alternative to BLM/Antifa bad cop. “You better elect us or you’ll have to deal with them!”, similar to Schumer’s threat to SCOTUS about reaping a whirlwind. I hope people like Tucker Carlson et al. can expose the integrated nature of the operation. They are moderate and radical wings of the same loose entity, much like Hamas is organized.
The Conservapedia article on BLM by Schlafly’s son gives some of the underlying background connections.
As you observe, the Left is not leaving any alternative to their rule other than a Right-Nationalist replacement. The Republicans will have to become ever more authoritarian in order to defeat the Demsheviks, just as the Demsheviks have already become totalitarian in form in order to attempt the ouster of Trump.
Cage match. Two men walk in, one man walks out.
Whatever results, the times be a changin’.
I don’t disagree with you Misha except in this regard: Biden can no longer be considered the “moderate” or “sensible” alternative to Bernie. Bill Clinton would have filled that role in another time. That’s the first problem with your hypothesis
The second problem is that Biden is his own worst enemy. Although he’s had a spate of three good weeks not stepping on his feet, all indications are that his periods of lucidity are few and far between.
Hence I can easily envision a John Kerry or even Hillary Clinton stepping up to the plate to replace him. Then your thesis would be 100% correct.
I think Tucker put it well tonight. Biden is an empty husk, both figuratively and literally (mentally). He is the device for the revolutionary left to get into power.
If Biden gets elected, he will be a puppet of the Antifa/BLM/progressive wing for just long enough to get established. Then he’ll be retired with a hero’s send-off, and Kamala or whoever will take over for 10 years, sealing the revolution.
The history of the American constitutional republic is filled with episodes of social and political conflicts and episodes of partisanship but the Republic has survived. In each episode the survival of the republic was doubted and the future called bleak and different groups sure that the apocalyptic end was near. The players and particulars may change from episode to episode but the Republic survived. Our current times are no different and the center held in all those episodes in the midst of the partisan conflict and apocalyptic language and hand wringing. The book, Henry Clay:The Essential American, is a good read and its description of what the American Republic endured from the 1820-1850 period has many parallels to today
Fr, I’ll put that book on my to-do list.
Unfortunately, I’m nowhere near as optimistic as you. The U S during the time you recite was largely agrarian and people could “head for the hills” and eke out a living. Nor were victors totalitarian or genocidal. The only time that such a regime transpired in America was during Reconstruction, when the Radical Republicans darkest wish was to exterminate the Southern whites and replace them with carpetbaggers.
The State today is far more totalitarian in instinct. We got a dress rehearsal of this with COVID when they shut down the churches with nary a thought in the world and the complicity of our bishops.
Regardless of whether Trump wins or loses, we will have more turmoil. I’ve seen the faces of these Antifa types and believe me, they are hate-filled. That doesn’t mean that they aren’t capable of redemption, perish the thought! That’s not my job though, my job is to protect those whom the Lord has entrusted into my care.
Bottom line: Trump loses, it’s over. Trump wins, maybe –just maybe–we can come out of this without a civil insurrection.
It comes down to this: will the present Maoist cultural revolution burn itself out? Yes, they all do. The question is not “if” but “when” and how much damage and mayhem is sustained in the interim.
“the Republic has survived. In each episode the survival of the republic was doubted and the future called bleak and different groups sure that the apocalyptic end was near.”
I’d argue that it didn’t survive. These United States, a voluntary union of sovereign countries, like the EU, died a violent death, and something new was born, The United States. If the Union had just let the Confederacy leave, then the legacy of the Founding Fathers would have lived on in both of them, and in any states that left either of them, but what happened just ended it forever. Which is why the Left correctly identifies the Confederacy as the weak spot to attack, demonize it and you’ve automatically taken down the Founding Fathers as well, then all of American history can be “canceled” and wiped away in the Cultural Revolution.
“Our current times are no different”
Our times are completely different, and not just for the USA.
Paul Craig Roberts, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury under President Reagan. June, 15th:
https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2020/06/15/the-joys-of-diversity-and-multicullturalism-have-come-home-to-roost/
June, 22nd. Canceling America:
https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2020/06/22/cancelling-america/
After reading your comment Myst, I wish I had answered this way: despite all the turbulence in times past in America, there was never any of this demonic fury that would seek to not only destroy our common history, but believe in nonsensical things like gay “marriage” and men mutilating themselves so they can be women.
Nor would any denomination have countenanced the closing of their places of worship for any reason whatsoever.
If you want to go all the way back, the literal coup de tat was the replacement of the Articles of Confederation by the Constitution. Under the former, the ordinary working man had a lot of say in how things were done; under the latter, merchants and lawyers took over.
We are taught the Articles were a disaster and simply had to be replaced. But the victor writes the history. A disaster for who? The banksters, whose champion was Alexander Levine aka Hamilton, who was actually Jewish (not that there’s anything wrong with that) and first arrived in America only in 1772. Hardly what we think of as America’s founding stock, but a man with different priorities and worldviews.
The Constitution was ultimately put in place illegally, for the Articles could only be repealed by unanimous vote of the states and never was, and under foreign influence to force states to pay their war debts, which was impossible to compel under the Articles. There’s a reason the constitutional convention happened in secret while Jefferson was overseas. Very few of the men who signed the Declaration were involved in forming the Constitution. Many were staunchly against it, for reasons that were vindicated over time.
That was the first triumph of commerce and capital over the working man and his rights under common law; the second was the Civil War.
Furthermore, George Washington probably would have supported modern Democratic immigration policy. Maybe the goose was cooked from the start.
AS, I am becoming increasingly convinced that we did in fact take a wrong turn when we dropped the Articles of Confederation. In this I am in agreement. However, regarding Alexander Hamilton (my least-favorite of the Founding Fathers), I followed that link and despite the best efforts of that professor, it’s clear that even according to his own research, Hamilton was of completely gentile stock. His biological father was Scots and his mother was French Huguenot. Even if we accept as fact that his mother (Rachel) later married a Danish Jew and even converted, that does not make her son Jewish in any way.
While it is true that Jewish identity is traced through the mother according to Jewish law, a woman’s conversion to Judaism is not universally recognized by Jewry as a whole. The reason for this is that there are many different denominations and even today in Israel, the Orthodox rabbinate has a stranglehold on which marriages and conversions they accept as valid.
In any event, just because Hamilton’s mother may have converted to Judaism (this is still not clear from other sources), it would have had no effect on his own confessional status as her husband was not Hamilton’s sire. And her marriage never erased the sting that Hamilton felt about his bastardy.
Excellent points, George. I have to say, I had to stop reading books about the Russian Revolution because it was too agonizing watching Kerensky and his Provisional Government sellout the country while the Reds slithered into place.
Now, I’m reading about China from roughly the early 20s through the fall of Chiang Kai-shek. Painful reading, too, to see what clowns like General George Marshall and Joseph Stilwell did to the Chinese. During WWII, when Chennault was actually doing something meaningful, Marshall and Stilwell (among others who had clear, Red sympathies) seemed to do everything in their power to sabotage the Generalissimo. They denied funding, equipment, military support, and advocacy in Washington at a time when the Chinese fought like hell to keep the Japanese pinned down in China. Yet, Chou-en-Lai and Mao were treated like heroes and great, patriotic fighters while Chiang Kai-shek was constantly criticized and discarded.
It’s clear who lost China and there seems to be a direct line from the actions of quislings and traitors that shaped American policy and institutions after the war to the emergence of institutions and the “deep state” today. What would the world be like now if Marshall and Stilwell (and those they enabled) hadn’t sold out the Nationalists?
Good question.
No one has ever been obliged to volunteer for martyrdom unless it is a question of “deny Christ or die.”
When persecuted, some fought, some fled, and some went to the sword. All of these can be pleasing to God. We must live in the Spirit now so that we are strong in him and know what to do if that day ever comes.
?Anybody hear refreshing News?
Mohammed Ali’s son, Mohammed Ali Jr., spoke out on behalf of his father — says he would Not be for BLM + their violence at all + would support President Trump! ??Yay!
Thank you! By the way, I’m Fr. Joseph Gleason, not Fr. Patrick.
So very sorry, Father. I noticed other errors in there, as well. I have NO IDEA how the name Patrick got in there, though, as we are both well aware of your name! (I just changed it back to Joseph.) Frankly, it’s concerning. We’ve been having a lot of weird hacks lately. Like my daughter’s old work phone breaking into a call I was on with another caller and a call from the Tucson Utilities company about automatic payments which were turned off over 4 years ago when I sold the house and left AZ. – Very strange stuff.
We loved your piece, BTW.
Thanks for stopping by, Father. You’re in the crosshairs of our enemies, so your work is obviously blessed. Keep it up.
Your most recent article on BLM is a true Orthodox microphone drop moment.
“Anyone who joins Black Lives Matter does so either out of ignorance, or out of extreme impiety…After reading this article, a person can claim ignorance no longer. ” ’nuff said
Thank you for mentioning that whites in early America were “treated like slaves.” The truth is they were actual slaves, and treated much worse than black slaves.
What our history is silent on is that these slaves were white Catholics, the first slaves in the American colonies, long before black Africans. They were largely from Ireland. After the Protestant Reformation, prejudice against Catholics was extreme, Catholicism was outlawed, Catholics could not get work, and there was a huge rise in dire poverty as a result. British traders in the Virginia colonies, who were Protestant, needed workers. They found it convenient to simply kidnap poor Catholics off the streets, a free source of slaves who could later be sold.
It was mainly children they kidnapped, because easier to overpower and control, and huge numbers were kidnapped. Archeological remains of their skeletons have been discovered in the southern US, and compared with skeletal remains of black slaves. White Catholics were typically far more abused, beaten, and malnourished than blacks. Their bodies were normally disposed of in trash heaps, whereas black slaves were usually buried, if in a poor plot reserved for blacks.
Black slavery began a little later with trade with Africa. They were treated better because they had to be purchased from black slave traders, rather than kidnapped for free like white Catholics (there are families in Africa today still rich off the slave trade). White Catholic slavery ended with the American Revolution, but it took the Civil War to end black slavery. And black slavery, as others have noted, continues in Islam, 2+ million held in Middle Eastern countries today, but also individual cases being discovered in the US due to Muslim immigration.
Regardless of what one thinks of the Catholic Church, the enslavement of white Catholics is a shameful part of British and American history, even more shameful because it has been silenced. Read the book White Cargo to learn more about it. And if you mention white slavery in the early American colonies, out of respect for those slaves be clear they were “white Catholics enslaved by Protestants,” because that’s what they were.