Robert Weissberg And American Renaissance: The Inherent Racism Of The Right Wing

Yet another entry in the “They say they’re not racists, but” file:

On the eve of the most widely anticipated conservative event of the year, the group responsible for organizing the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC 13) has chosen to feature the work of a controversial white nationalist professor on its website.

As of February 27, the American Conservative Union (ACU) website features an article by Dr. Robert Weissberg, a retired University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign political science professor with a second career as a white nationalist. Since the first CPAC conference in 1973, the American Conservative Union has been the principal sponsor of the gathering. ACU has a staff person, Vinh Nguyen, listed as a “CPAC producer.” And ACU’s executive director and chairman call the event to order and provide the initial welcoming remarks. Weissberg’s essay was found on the front page of the ACU’s site, just beneath a big banner advertising CPAC 13.

Weissberg’s short essay was entitled “Debating Liberal Tactics.” And the biography at the bottom notes that he’s taught at several universities and written 11 books. It leaves out some important details, however, including his repeated participation with a white nationalist outfit, American Renaissance, and his explicitly racist writings. Further, Robert Weissberg’s racist beliefs were well-known long before the ACU published his article.

The issue garnered national attention last year. After IREHR exposed Weissberg’s participation at the 2012 American Renaissance conference (and previous white nationalist events), National Review editor Rich Lowry publically gave him the boot from his magazine.

It shouldn’t surprise anyone that American conservatives can’t quit backing bigotry. Their patron saint, Ayn Rand, advocates bigotry under the guise of rewarding “superior” indviduals (or “makers”) and punishing everyone else (or “takers”, “moochers”, and “useless eaters”) — and they tell themselves over and over again that they are the superior ones.

Ratzinger and Vatican II: the untold story

Paul Surlis, The Consortium:

Benedict, as Joseph Ratzinger, an expert at the council, explained and enthusiastically endorsed the reforming trends of the council. After each of the council’s four sessions, Dr. Ratzinger wrote a pamphlet-length account of what had transpired during the preceding session and these reflections were subsequently collected in a book, Theological Highlights of Vatican II
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One of the great structural changes envisaged by the council was a transition from a centralized, monarchical papacy where one person, the pope, assisted by the curial cardinals, has absolute power over the universal church to a church that would be governed by the bishops of the entire church in union with the pope.
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As part of collegiality it was intended that a synod representing the bishops of the universal church would be permanently in session and involved in church governance and would control the Curia, which would be forced to serve the pope and bishops as a civil service. However, the Curia reasserted itself after the council and now plays a dominant role in the universal Church.
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A truly collegial church might well have avoided scandals…but unfortunately implementing collegiality and an independent synod of bishops is still a dead letter.

Pope John Paul II (1978-2005) made it clear at the outset of his papacy that the role of the bishops was to assist him in his ministry, not to exercise any sort of independent governance with and under him as the council envisaged.
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…Cardinal Ratzinger targeted theologians for repressive surveillance, and he engendered a mood of fear and anxiety …

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A burning question is why did Dr. Ratzinger turn his back on council teaching and its progressive agenda? And the answer has much to do with the student revolt of 1968 which scared Dr. Ratzinger. The great deference shown to German professors gave way to jeering and cat-calls.
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Now that Benedict is retired and the search for a new pope is underway, it is time to ask what the principal concerns of a pope should be. It is clear now from stories of scandals both financial and sexual within the Curia and the Vatican that structural reform is imperative.

Collegiality needs to be implemented