* RULE 1: “Power is not only what you have, but what the enemy thinks you have.” Power is derived from 2 main sources – money and people. “Have-Nots” must build power from flesh and blood. (These are two things of which there is a plentiful supply. Government and corporations always have a difficult time appealing to people, and usually do so almost exclusively with economic arguments.)

* RULE 2: “Never go outside the expertise of your people.” It results in confusion, fear and retreat. Feeling secure adds to the backbone of anyone. (Organizations under attack wonder why radicals don’t address the “real” issues. This is why. They avoid things with which they have no knowledge.)

* RULE 3: “Whenever possible, go outside the expertise of the enemy.” Look for ways to increase insecurity, anxiety and uncertainty. (This happens all the time. Watch how many organizations under attack are blind-sided by seemingly irrelevant arguments that they are then forced to address.)

* RULE 4: “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” If the rule is that every letter gets a reply, send 30,000 letters. You can kill them with this because no one can possibly obey all of their own rules. (This is a serious rule. The besieged entity’s very credibility and reputation is at stake, because if activists catch it lying or not living up to its commitments, they can continue to chip away at the damage.)

* RULE 5: “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.” There is no defense. It’s irrational. It’s infuriating. It also works as a key pressure point to force the enemy into concessions. (Pretty crude, rude and mean, huh? They want to create anger and fear.)

* RULE 6: “A good tactic is one your people enjoy.” They’ll keep doing it without urging and come back to do more. They’re doing their thing, and will even suggest better ones. (Radical activists, in this sense, are no different that any other human being. We all avoid “un-fun” activities, and but we revel at and enjoy the ones that work and bring results.)

* RULE 7: “A tactic that drags on too long becomes a drag.” Don’t become old news. (Even radical activists get bored. So to keep them excited and involved, organizers are constantly coming up with new tactics.)

* RULE 8: “Keep the pressure on. Never let up.” Keep trying new things to keep the opposition off balance. As the opposition masters one approach, hit them from the flank with something new. (Attack, attack, attack from all sides, never giving the reeling organization a chance to rest, regroup, recover and re-strategize.)

* RULE 9: “The threat is usually more terrifying than the thing itself.” Imagination and ego can dream up many more consequences than any activist. (Perception is reality. Large organizations always prepare a worst-case scenario, something that may be furthest from the activists’ minds. The upshot is that the organization will expend enormous time and energy, creating in its own collective mind the direst of conclusions. The possibilities can easily poison the mind and result in demoralization.)

* RULE 10: “The major premise for tactics is the development of operations that will maintain a constant pressure upon the opposition.” It is this unceasing pressure that results in the reactions from the opposition that are essential for the success of the campaign.

* RULE 11: “If you push a negative hard enough, it will push through and become a positive.” Violence from the other side can win the public to your side because the public sympathizes with the underdog. (Unions used this tactic. Peaceful [albeit loud] demonstrations during the heyday of unions in the early to mid-20th Century incurred management’s wrath, often in the form of violence that eventually brought public sympathy to their side.)

* RULE 12: “The price of a successful attack is a constructive alternative.” Never let the enemy score points because you’re caught without a solution to the problem. (Old saw: If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Activist organizations have an agenda, and their strategy is to hold a place at the table, to be given a forum to wield their power. So, they have to have a compromise solution.)

* RULE 13: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.” Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions. (This is cruel, but very effective. Direct, personalized criticism and ridicule works.)

By the way, Saul Alinsky dedicated his book to Lucifer.

Know your political enemy; this is how radicals operate and attempt to gain power. We witness this more and more frequently in America.

The failed protests in Wisconsin to recall Governor Scott Walker were heated and at times intimidating. There was plenty of foul language, and both communist and socialist groups had a presence there. Something else had to be behind this behavior. While navigating around the NEA website during that time, I was shocked to find on their recommended reading list, right there in plain sight, Rules for Radicals by Saul Alinsky, “The American Organizer.” The 1971 book articulated a socialist strategy for gaining political power to redistribute wealth. Talk about bullying, Chicago politics, and thuggery.

Why would the NEA want teachers to learn about fascist, radical, socialist-inspired methods of protesting? America found out why in 2011 when public employee unions and socialist groups took the Wisconsin state capital hostage. On the NEA website, it called Alinsky “an inspiration to anyone contemplating action in their community.” It also recommended his 1946 book Reveille for Radicals, about the principles and tactics of “community organizing.”

The Alinsky method is to: agitate, aggravate, educate, organize, ridicule, pressure, and polarize. What does this have to do with teaching children and improving education? For now, let’s state some specific examples of his tactics and techniques – otherwise known as “rules” for activists and protesters. According to its own website, the NEA talked about making people more effective activists and encouraging them “not to worry too much about getting his or her hands dirty. It’s all a part of the job, he [Alinsky] seems to say.”

Since the NEA recommended his books and wants teachers to be effective protestors, let’s take a gander at the content. This is very eye-opening to most of us in Wisconsin who witnessed the vociferous union demonstrations that caused chaos, state division, and property damage, all over the collective bargaining issue. As an activist trainer, Saul Alinsky counseled organizers and activists to cause confusion, fear, and retreat. The Wisconsin teachers who participated were just following instructions.

Why discuss this? The NEA encourages its employees to organize and emulate activists such as Saul Alinsky. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were also Alinsky disciples. They aim to achieve their goals at any cost. (Author’s note: The recommended reading page on Saul Alinsky and his books has been scrubbed from the National Education Association’s website.)

*Partial exerpt from the book,  ERADICATE: BLOTTING OUT GOD IN AMERICA