Shoe Stores, Accurate News and Talking to Dead People

In the continuation of the Reform full circle theme, I am once again going to discuss Stephen Harper's control of the media and the message and compare it to the first leader of this movement, Willliam "Bible Bill" Aberhart.

Harper has often been compared to Adolph Hitler for propaganda and message control, which of course is always denounced as fear mongering.

Another common accusation is that he's flirting with fascism, because of his dictatorial style, and governance of fear. And despite the growing number of victims, people again brush it off.

But I have developed a very peculiar talent of late. I can now talk to dead people. Honest.

And no I don't need to be put in Jason Kenney's Home for the Terminally Insane. I have been talking to dead people for days, and they are talking back.

Since Stephen Harper is so secretive about his past, I've been trying to put it together, but I was looking in the wrong place. Instead of turning over stones as I have been doing, I should have been turning over sod.

After stumbling onto the old Time magazine article written when Aberhart's Social Credit Party was first elected, revealing that "Bible Bill" actually fashioned his government's messaging after Hitler's "Ministry of Propaganda & Public Enlightenment, I wanted to learn more. It was just too coincidental to ignore.

Premier Aberhart announced that Alberta Government news will hereafter be "dished out in platters" by a bureau with exclusive monopoly of statements from the Premier & Cabinet so that ''there will be no more scoops." .... According to Alberta reporters they are going to be stuffed with Aberhart press handouts, barred from ferreting out real news. (1)

As I stated before, when Aberhart emulated Hitler, it was while the Fuhrer was still popular. However, I had read that Stephen Harper studied the reasons for the success of Social Credit, the forerunner to his Reform Party. The SoCreds had ruled Alberta for almost four decades; so he definitely has long term plans.

Accurate News and Shoe Stores:

In 1936 William Aberhart created the Accurate News and Information Act, which according to author and journalist Gordon Laird, required the province's skeptical newspapers to be "fairer" to government and to print state-authored articles of equal length to any anti-government items published. It would eventually be overturned by the Supreme Court, but it definitely created a combative atmosphere.

The following year he announced plans to legislate censorship:

"Why shouldn't newspapers be licensed [like doctors or lawyers] and licensed for the protection of the public and be required to live up to a certain standard of truth and honesty in their publications?" asked Aberhart. "I want to show them that, if we can handle their bosses, the financiers, we can handle their henchmen!" (2)

In 2007, Tonda MacCharles in the Ottawa Bureau of the Toronto Star, unearthed secret plans for a special media centre, dubbed the "Shoe Store Project". At the time Harper's staff had been working quietly, to restore an old shoe store into a controlled environment for government messaging.

The Prime Minister's Office, which has long had a rocky relationship with the national media, has been working on a secret project to build a new, government-controlled briefing room at the cost of $2 million, documents obtained by the Star show. ... The result would be a little fancier than the National Press Theatre and, most important, give the PMO a lot more control over who gets in and, quite possibly, what gets filmed and broadcast.

... Since the Conservative government's relationship with national media is already fraught with tension over curtailed access to ministers and Harper, the project was clearly deemed highly sensitive ... A hand-drawn sketch of the PM's renovated shoe store/press theatre indicates a space for "maybe permanently installed cameras with feeds to media."

That could put the news cameras in the hands of government-employed camera operators, not independent photojournalists employed by the television networks.

Once the media got wind of the project it was axed, but now just a few short years later, the PMO staff are taking their own photographs, writing their own copy and creating their own video. Messrs Aberhart and Hitler would be impressed.

Matthew Brett of Global Research is not:

Not surprisingly, the Globe and Mail and other news organizations ran a press release from the PMO's office verbatim, with no critical commentary, analysis or insight. The state of media today is such that copy-pasting a press release from the PMO and slapping it on the front page of a national daily newspaper is accepted practice. Indeed, Conservative strategist Tom Flanagan writes that “compared to most countries with which I have any familiarity, the Conservatives in Canada actually have friendly media to work with.” The ‘Propaganda Model’ is more than alive and well, but sometimes without even bothering to ‘filter’ news content.

I had delved into the history of Social Credit before, but I hadn't really put it in context. However, it's not that difficult and shouldn't really be surprising, given that the five leaders of this movement, are all very closely connected.

William Aberhart's disciple, lieutenant and right hand man was Ernest Manning. These two men ruled Alberta for almost 40 years, and worked to create a National Party.

Ernest had a son Preston (Aberhart was his Godfather). Preston Manning's disciple, lieutenant and right hand man was Stephen Harper. Preston was the only leader that the Reform Party ever had, but when they became the Alliance Party, Harper was approached to run for it's leadership. He declined, so instead Stockwell Day assumed the role. (Stevie came back when Stocky screwed up.)

Stockwell's father was also a member of the Social Credit Party and had in fact ran against Tommy Douglas years ago.

So for more than 75 years this has been a family business, which means that Stephen Harper is just carrying on a family tradition. Control the message and the media, while waiting for 'the Rapture'. Oye!

Back to Previous To Start of Reform Full Circle and William Aberhart.

Footnotes:

1. Social Credit Improved, Times Magazine, September 16, 1935

2. Slumming it at the Rodeo: The Cultural Roots of Canada's Right-Wing Revolution, Gordon Laird, 1998, Douglas & McIntyre, ISBN: 1-55054 627-9, Pg. 47

Harper's new plans for message control may be his own though:

More on Stephen Harper and That Reform Full Circle Thingy

I posted yesterday on discovering a website with archived Times Magazine articles. The ones I am reading deal with William "Bible Bill" Aberhart, the first leader of Stephen Harper's party at the time of it's inception in 1935.

Harper himself reveals this in his now infamous 1997 speech to the Council for National Policy, but most people already knew that Social Credit was the predecessor of the Reform Party.

The Reform then went on to become the Alliance Party of Canada and then the Conservative Party of Canada. Harper won the leadership when they were still calling themselves Alliance.

The 1935 articles show how William Aberhart established a propaganda machine fashioned after Adolph Hitler's Ministry of Propaganda & Public Enlightenment, which explains why people now compare Harper's control of the media to Nazi Germany.

However, he did not learn his technique from Hitler, but Aberhart.

Apparently Harper had studied the secret of the party's early success in Alberta, so he could tap into it as he launched his own political career. However aside from things I revealed in the first part of this story, I came across another element that is also quite disturbing.

Waiting for the Rapture in 1936:

In addition to being Alberta's unpredictable head man. Premier Aberhart is head of Calgary's Prophetic Bible Institute. Last fortnight he protested against being called a religious fanatic on the basis of an utterance made in 1917, when reporters understood him to say the Last Trump was at hand. "Let me say that Jesus is not coming in 1936 or 1937 or 1938 or 1939 or 1940 or 1941,:'' Premier Aberhart firmly told newshawks. "Have you got that clear? . . . Now listen carefully. Seven years before the coming of Christ, the raptures shall take place. This will be when the Lord appears in the clouds. The raptures have not taken place yet." (1)

'Raptures'? Where have we heard that before?

According to Wikipedia:

He [Aberhart] became fascinated with prophetical teaching in the Bible and studied a correspondence course by the American evangelical theologian Cyrus Scofield.

Waiting for the Rapture in the 21st Century:

Cyrus Scofield, as I mentioned in relation to Aberhart, is the father of the dispensationalist premillennialism movement, and his book; the Scofield Reference Bible, is believed to be the driving force behind Zionist John Hagee and Left Behind's Tim LaHaye.

From Lorette C. Luzajic's series, Pillars of Faith: John Hagee Rides Again

Marching to Zion - Fire and brimstone is alive and well. ... Though his disparaging comments against women, gays, blacks and pagans raise few eyebrows among fundamentalists, Hagee’s militant pro-Israel stance is controversial. ... Hagee defends Zionism, calls for war with Iran, decries Palestine, and fights anti-Semitism, earning “humanitarian” awards from Israel.

Hagee blames those cult-y Catholic Christians for the world’s historic hatred toward Jews. The Catholic Church (“the Great Whore”) and Hitler were in conspiratorial cahoots with the Devil. But wait! The Jews may be God’s chosen, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t on this lunatic’s list of derision. After all, they brought the holocaust on themselves, in an ancient curse by God for perpetual idol worshipping. Despite the tragic torture and death of millions, Hitler was heroic, fulfilling Zion by driving the Jews back to Israel where they belong! Hagee’s eager for nuclear war to erupt out of Israel, because that is a pre-requisite for Christ’s return.

I've mentioned John Hagee in several posts but of importance is that he is the founder of Christians United for Israel. Charles McVety is head of the Canadian chapter and Jason Kenney is joined at the hip with Charles McVety. I have also mentioned several times that I believe they are planning to use Israel's nuclear weapons to initiate what they call 'God's Foreign Policy', and it would appear so does Luzajic.

Oh and Tim LaHaye? Remember that 1997 speech of Harper's at the Council for National Policy? Yep, Tim LaHaye (along with James Dobson and others) founded that pro-military God's foreign policy group. They approved of Stephen Harper even before George Bush, and unless you're approved by them, forget about it.

Waiting for the Rapture With Stephen Harper:

Now I don't know how much Stephen Harper himself really believes of this stuff. Some in the media suggest that he only goes along with it to keep the So-cons in line, but I think it's much more than that.

Harper is a psychopathic narcissist, who will do whatever it takes to stay in power. He's been called a control freak, an extremist and a lying sack of ... oops ... erase that last one. It's mine.

According to Marcie McDonald, author of the book The Armageddon Factor, when he was speaking at the Civitas Society:

... he outlined plans for a broad new party coalition that would ensure a lasting hold on power. The only route, he argued, was to focus not on the tired wish list of economic conservatives or “neo-cons,” as they’d become known, but on what he called “theo-cons”—those social conservatives who care passionately about hot-button issues that turn on family, crime, and defence ...Arguing that the party had to come up with tough, principled stands on everything from parents’ right to spank their children to putting “hard power” behind the country’s foreign-policy commitments ..." (2)

And just look at the executive of this 'Society':

Founding President: William Gairdner

Other Past Presidents: Tom Flanagan, William Robson, and Lorne Gunter

Founding Directors: Janet Ajzenstat, Ted Byfield, Michel Coren, Jacques Dufresne, Tom Flanagan, David Frum, William Gairdner, Jason Kenney, Gwen Landolt (REAL Women), Ezra Levant, Tom Long, Mark Magner, William Robson, David E. Somerville (National Citizens Coalition), Michael Walker (Fraser Institute)

So just how far is Stephen Harper willing to go with this 'hard power'? Does he believe in this stuff or has he just learned that it was part of the secret of Aberhart's success: the Fear Factor? But as Marcie McDonald asks:

What does it mean if and when a believer in the infallibility of Biblical prophecy comes to power and backs a damn-the-torpedoes course in the Middle East? Does it end up fuelling overenthusiastic end-timers who feel they have nothing to lose in some future conflagration, helping speed the world on Hagee’s fast track to Armageddon? (2)

It would be nice to get an answer from our fearless leader, but he's not talking. Thank you William Aberhart and Adolph Hitler. He's learned his lessons well.

Back to Part One ... Continue to Next

Footnotes:

(1) Refinance and Raptures, Times Magazine, April 13, 1936

(2) Stephen Harper and the Theo-cons: The rising clout of Canada’s religious right, Walrus Magazine, October 2006)

Reform Has Come Full Circle as News is Being "Dished Out in Platters"

I was researching something else today and came across a site with archived Times Magazine articles.

The ones that I found interesting were from 1935, when William "Bible Bill" Aberhart was first named Premier of Alberta.

He wasn't elected premier, but was founder and leader of the new Social Credit Party, when they won 56 of 63 seats in the provincial election.

The new leader, William Aberhart, whose ancestors were German, followed the tactic of Adolf Hitler in not standing for election to a legislative seat but devoting all his energies to boosting the Social Credit Party into power. This accomplished, plain Mr. Aberhart accepted from one of his Party henchmen last week the seat he had to have before he could be named Premier. (1)

Now there were no negative connotations with comparing him to Adolph Hitler at the time. You've got to remember that the German leader was highly thought of then, and in fact was the 1938 Times Man of the Year.

But there was something else of Hitler's that Aberhart emulated, that is far more striking. His propaganda machine.

Without crudely borrowing the name of Germany's "Ministry of Propaganda & Public Enlightenment," Premier Aberhart announced that Alberta Government news will hereafter be "dished out in platters" by a bureau with exclusive monopoly of statements from the Premier & Cabinet so that ''there will be no more scoops." .... According to Alberta reporters they are going to be stuffed with Aberhart press handouts, barred from ferreting out real news. (1)

I've written on the history of Social Credit before, since they were the forerunner to the Reform Party. Ernest Manning, Preston Manning's father took over from Aberhart when he died, and the SC ran Alberta for decades. It was considered to be pretty radical back in the day, but started off slowly.

Adolf Hitler's first moves when he reached power were adroitly Conservative, and so last week were William Aberhart's. (1)

So while everyone is comparing Stephen Harper's tight message control to Adolph Hitler, which is so often dismissed as fear mongering; it would appear that Stephen Harper isn't copying the notorious German chancellor at all.

He's obviously researched the success of the Social Credit Party and is taking his lead from William Aberhart; who in fact did copy his style from none other than Adolph Hitler. How about that?

Bill Aberhart Radio Star

Anyone who has studied the Social Credit Party knows that Bill Aberhart had a popular evangelical radio show, but he was also the subject of another radio program.

Beginning in 1931, Times Magazine dramatized some of their news stories, called The March of Time and on August 28, 1935; they reenacted the story of none other than William "Bible Bill" Aberhart. This is how they billed it: A socialist has been elected to head the Alberta, Canada government. He plans to pay all citizens $25 per month. A 'socialist'? Oh, my!

Now I don't know who played his part, though two of the male 'voices' under contract at the time were Orson Welles and Art Carney.

Stephen Harper, Bill Aberhart and Pulpit Politics

So we now know, or can surmise, that Stephen Harper learned how to manipulate the press from the first leader of this party, William Aberhart, who learned it from Adolph Hitler; which explains a lot.

But that was not the only thing that contributed to Social Credit's success that our fearless leader has copied. He's also learned how to manipulate religious fervour.

In 1935 Times magazine dubbed Aberhart "The Messiah" and referred to him as "a Bible-babbling high-school principal ..." After pious rejoicing at the Prophetic Bible Institute and devout singing of Our God, Our Help in Ages Past, Messiah Aberhart announced that he was ready to accept the call to be Alberta's Premier. (2)

William Aberhart was able to own his people mind, body and soul.

Stephen Harper, William Aberhart and a Dictatorial Style

This new Social Credit movement was certainly controversial, and most people had their doubts that it could work at all. But Aberhart was going to make it work, no matter what. He would never accept defeat.

In Alberta it was freely predicted that Messiah Aberhart will never be able to make Social Credit work unless he makes himself a Dictator. Canadian jurists meanwhile believed that Social Credit as proposed in the Province of Alberta is "contrary to the North America Act" which is the fundamental law of Canada's Constitution.

... "They say what we propose to do is unconstitutional!" he snorted. "Just because an old paper was signed in the past doesn't say we can't do this. The British North America Act is a fool act. We can do what we want! (2)

Stephen Harper, William Aberhart and no Fraucus in the Caucus

Like Stephen Harper, Aberhart ruled his caucus, and it would seem everyone else, with an iron fist. Time referred to him as a " ... political bigot who makes his followers take vows to read nothing and listen to nothing uttered by anyone against either himself or Social Credit. (3)

He actually made them sign an oath that they wouldn't read anything against the party. This meant that they wouldn't have been allowed to read these Times articles.

An economic pontiff, William Aberhart makes his followers sign pledges that they accept Social Credit "on faith," forbids them to debate or argue its merits.(2)

And also like Harper, he knew how to utilize attack ads to get what he wanted. When then prime minister, R.B. Bennet was running for re-election:

As his most distasteful chore of the week, the Dominion Premier, who holds his House of Commons seat from Alberta, made a Federal loan of $2,500,000 to that Province's newly-victorious Social Credit Premier William Aberhart. Such seemed to be the price charged by Social Crediteers for withholding their attacks from Mr. Bennett personally in the election. (4)

Bennet lost anyway.

I think I may have actually read somewhere that Harper did study the history of the Social Credit Party to tap into their success, but I didn't realize that it was to this extent. And since Aberhart modeled his party, at least in the beginning, after Hitler's success, it's not that difficult to see where our new Messiah's style came from.

I'm definitely going to look into this a little more. Who knew that I may be able to figure out our little dictator from reading seventy-five year old issues of Times Magazine.

And yes, he also adopted the worst of the Republican system, but Newt Gingrich claims to have drawn on Preston Manning's success, by watching his television ads.

This is certainly a mystery, but I'm on it. (Forward to Part Two)

(1) Social Credit Improved, Times Magazine, September 16, 1935

(2) Messiah, Major, Money, Times Magazine, September 2, 1935

(3) New Viceroy, General Election, Times Magazine, October 21, 1935

(4) King or Chaos, Times Magazine, September 23, 1935