Leadership Secrets of Jesus and Joseph Stalin

Or, don't be a conspiracy theorist. Be a conspiracy practitioner.

OK, over the past 10 posts, I have shown you how to be both Reactionary and Greener than Al Gore. I have written on the value of Green RINOs and the benefits of becoming one (if you live in the right area). And before that, I have given you ideas for raising the market minimum wage, making early family formation feasible, and making education useful again. So, how about making things happen?

The next step is Creative Visualization.

For those on the Left Coast or in a college town, imagine that you walk into your local dispirited Republican Party meeting. You take the podium. "I have a solution! I know how we can swing the centrists our way and still make America great again. The key is conservationism. We can be greener than the Democrats without compromising our principles. Here's how..." The gathering listens intently. There is great applause, and after the gathering some big donors approach you and ask if you are interesting in running for Congress...

Having difficulty with that image? Concentrate! Send those quantum cartoon waves out into the Universe. Manifest success!

OK, let's try another one, this time for Red state dwellers.

Your state is Red, but the children aren't. Something must be done. You read the education reform ideas in Rules 3 and 5 and pick out the ones you like. You write a letter, "Dear Governor [fill in blank], I am concerned that we aren't doing a good job of teaching patriotism in our public schools. In the past, we taught American hero worship and downplayed our past crimes. Today, we do the opposite, holding our ancestors up to an impossible modern standard. Instead, we should hold our forefathers to the standards of the past, before machines took over the most boring jobs. We should teach more world history, and students compare the United States of the past with other countries and tribes of the same era...

"Furthermore, we need to prepare students for adult living by the time biology screams that they should be adults. Let students begin specializing earlier. Let students focus on what they are interested in vs. having to pass all general subjects first and then specialize. The history books are filled with people who focused on their careers long before high school graduation age. George Washington was surveying at 14, ..."

A month later you get a call from the governor's office. The governor loves your ideas. You are invited to attend a conference on how to work out the details...

Can you see it? Is the image sharp? Is it believable? Come on, man. You gotta Believe it!

OK, enough with the newage.¹ The real purpose of this exercise was not to do any Manifesting or even psyching up. The purpose was to get you to ask yourselves: "What's wrong with this picture?"

The answer can be found in the Gospel of St. Luke:

Luk 14:7  And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them, 

Luk 14:8  When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; 

Luk 14:9  And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. 

Luk 14:10  But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. 

Luk 14:11  For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. 

Here is the first lesson in leadership: don't try to lead until invited.

The operative question becomes: How do you get invited?

To answer that question, we turn to the 20th Century's true masters at getting invited to lead: The International Communist Conspiracy. During the 20th Century the Communists managed to infiltrate and influence labor unions, universities, Hollywood, non profit foundations, Third World independence movements, and the U.S. State Department -- all while being despised by the majority of the public. Their influence is still being felt even decades after the fall of the Soviet Empire.

Fortunately for us, the International Communist Conspiracy had a defector who converted to Roman Catholic Christianity. He gave a series of talks to a Roman Catholic audience detailing how the communists created leaders and put them in charge of everything from union locals to school boards and whatnot, and then used that influence to spread their message. He was trying to teach Christians how to use the same techniques to spread the Gospel. The transcripts of these lectures can be found in the short book Dedication and Leadership, by Douglass Hyde. Buy and read this book!!

It works. Back in the late 1990s a small-l libertarian co-worker gave me a copy and convinced me to apply the lessons. I was soon hobnobbing with leading members of the party and then served a while on the Libertarian National Committee. Given a portable job, I moved to a hippie area where the local LP was already very active. I worked on campaigns, knocked on hundreds of doors, did mailings, worked outreach tables, planted campaign signs, appeared on multiple talk radio programs, and networked with political groups all over the political map: left, right, straight, weird, Christian, New Age, normie, paranoid, green, and more. I got to drink beer and argue economics with the local leaders and politicians of the Left and the Bill of Rights with leaders and politicians of the Right. I've had wild and wacky adventures which would make a great book had I taken notes and didn't care about privacy. (I might tell a few of the wild tales to subscribers who join the private chat. Be there or be square.)

Steal from the best. Indeed, that's what the communists did. While Douglass Hyde taught Christians how to use the communists' techniques to spread Christianity, the communists stole those techniques from...The New Testament. In the sections to follow I will paraphrase and embellish some of my memories of Hyde's lectures² and mix in relevant Bible quotes to show that early Christians used these leadership techniques as well. While it is theoretically possible that the International Communist Conspiracy developed these ideas independently, let us keep in mind that Joseph Stalin attended seminary before he became a Marxist revolutionary.

The Communist Criterion for Leadership

While Marx promised a no-leaders utopia, in the real world the International Communist Conspiracy grew by developing leaders and using them to warp many of the institutions of the West. They did not limit their leadership pool to chisel-jawed alpha males who played high school football. They didn't limit their leadership pool to the intelligent, the good looking, the outgoing, or even the ideologically pure. They started with one criterion: willingness to do the work.

Suppose Dexter Doofus shows up at a Communist outreach table wearing a Che T-shirt, shorts, nerd glasses, black socks and Birkenstock sandals. In between sips of his giant Mountain Dew he says "Dudes! I want to be a Communist Party member too!"

Does Dexter get loved bombed for proclaiming his communist affiliation?

No.

Does he get invites to underground communist meetings? Does he get the Secret Decoder ring?

No.

On the other hand, does he get turned away for being a dork?

No.

Instead, Dexter is welcomed and given an assignment. "Great to have you on board! We need someone to hand out flyers on the corner of Woodrow Wilson Way and Country Club Lane. Can we count on you?"

If Dexter wimps out, then Dexter gets to be a fellow traveler at best. The International Communist Conspiracy was an elite organization; it did not grovel for new Inner Circle members.

But if Dexter does the task he gets his first lesson in leadership: buttonholing strangers in hostile territory. This is a pretty brutal self-chosen initiation.

Dexter does the task. He's worn out and dispirited. The people on that street corner were hostile, called him names, and told him how horrible communism is. He goes back to his Communist Conspiracy contacts and describes what happens.

Now they are more interested in Dexter. He has passed the first test of the Prime Criterion: willingness to do the work. "Yes Dexter, it's brutal out there. Our dream is often misunderstood. But we have this training seminar on the 11th on how to deal with objections and get past initial blocks? Care to come?"

Dexter says yes. And in the process he gets lessons in persuasion mixed in with his first lessons in Communist ideology.

Before we continue, let me ask: does any of this seem familiar? If you are, or were ever, a Christian you have heard a similar recruitment strategy. To start with, while Jesus preached to the masses, he expected most of the growth of the new religion to come from a few:

Mat 13:1  The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side. 

Mat 13:2  And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. 

Mat 13:3  And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; 

Mat 13:4  And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: 

Mat 13:5  Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: 

Mat 13:6  And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 

Mat 13:7  And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: 

Mat 13:8  But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. 

Mat 13:9  Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 

While multitudes got to hear Jesus speak, Jesus was rather choosy when it came to taking on active followers:

Luk 9:57  And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. 

Luk 9:58  And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. 

Luk 9:59  And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. 

Luk 9:60  Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God. 

Luk 9:61  And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house. 

Luk 9:62  And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. 

Consider the young rich man incident in this light:

Mar 10:17  And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? 

Mar 10:18  And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. 

Mar 10:19  Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. 

Mar 10:20  And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. 

Mar 10:21  Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. 

Mar 10:22  And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. 

Mar 10:23  And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 

Mar 10:24  And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! 

Mar 10:25  It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. 

Mar 10:26  And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? 

Mar 10:27  And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible. 

Mar 10:28  Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. 

Mar 10:29  And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, 

Mar 10:30  But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life. 

Mar 10:31  But many that are first shall be last; and the last first. 

Jesus was looking for people willing to pay a price up front. Note the promise in Mark 10:30 for getting the wealth back in this time.

And we also find the bias for action over ideological purity in the Gospels:

Luk 9:49  And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us. 

Luk 9:50  And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us. 

Taking Over a Union Local

OK, so Dexter has proven himself on the street corners selling the for-public-consumption message of the Communist Conspiracy. He has taken the classes and learned more of the ideology and how to sell it. He has made some friends in the movement by working together with others. It's time for Dexter to become a leader -- in another organization. Do some of that Leninist Torsion Belt stuff.

And it just so happens that the Hole Foods Market is earning an economic profit. Wage serfs there could earn an extra $3.82/hour and still leave the company enough reinvestment capital to continue its path to nationwide dominance in the field of doughnuts, bagels, macaroni, Swiss cheese, and toasted oat cereals. The Consolidated Doughnut Makers Union Local 249 isn't getting the job done. This is a golden takeover opportunity for the International Communist Conspiracy!

Dexter accepts the mission. He gets a job at the local Hole Foods Market industrial complex. He joins the union and runs for union office -- NOT!

While he does join the union, he does not do any activism. He concentrates on his job. He works at being a good worker. Scratch that! He works at becoming an excellent worker. At the urging of his Communist friends he spends his off work hours at a local dojo mastering the ancient Chinese art of doa ngut.³ He learns to channel his chi while distributing sprinkles. His confections have a symmetry that would please Confucius himself.

Only after he has gained the respect of his coworkers and become invaluable to management does he start to become active in the union.

Anything familiar about the above? How about this passage from Colossians?

Col 3:18  Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord. 

Col 3:19  Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them. 

Col 3:20  Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord. 

Col 3:21  Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged. 

Col 3:22  Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: 

Col 3:23  And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; 

Col 3:24  Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. 

Dexter makes doughnuts not just to get paid. Dexter makes doughnuts for a Grand Cause. His light is shining before other doughnut makers, who see his good work, and decide that commies are not such bad people after all.

With respect established, Dexter starts to become active in the union -- humbly active. He asks what needs to be done. He accepts union chores that others dislike. He does the work with enthusiasm and excellence. And when he is not at work or doing union chores, he's taking classes in union organizing at the local Communist lair. He learns what works and what backfires. He learns how to maximize worker value while keeping the business afloat. He also gets printouts of the aforementioned Communist research that shows how much concessions Hole Foods Market can afford to give to the union.

Having proved his helpfulness at the humble jobs, the union organizers take notice when Dexter displays a surprising amount of knowledge of how a union local should operate. The study becomes handy when it comes time for the next contract negotiation. Pay goes up, without the bother of a strike. Dexter is a hero and is nominated for a union office.

Now, once Dexter is established as a hero of labor, Dexter starts mixing in some Communist propaganda in the union newsletter. Maybe an article on the wonderful healthcare in Cuba. Perhaps a sprinkle of Solidarity for the Left Handed Bengali burlap makers. People shrug. Dexter has his quirks, but that extra $3.82/hour has people appreciating Dexter and they are willing to let him run the union local.

Why was Dexter able to rise and excel? Two answers:

1. He was working for more than a pay raise. He was working for The Cause.

2. He was getting coached by experienced Communists, who were likewise motivated.

Labor unions are part self-interest part volunteer organizations. When pay and benefits are unjustly low, it pays to agitate. But at some point rational self-interest says to go home instead of doing union stuff. Pay raise divided by effort to get the pay raise can fall below an acceptable "wage" -- without an ulterior motive.

Dexter got to lead because he was willing to serve.

Luk 22:25  And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. 

Luk 22:26  But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. 

Luk 22:27  For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth. 

And let us keep in mind that Joseph Stalin was General Secretary of the Communist Party, not Chairman.

Where the Woke are Vulnerable

The International Communist Conspiracy infiltrated by serving. They did it at the micro level.

They also did it at the macro level. Tired of colonial oppressors? The International Communist Conspiracy can help!

And they did.

Only after achieving full political power did the Communists show themselves to be serpents in sheeps' clothing.

Well, the Woke are acting like end-game Communists. They are no longer serving. They are destroying the organizations and causes they control, just as Communist governments destroyed the economies and societies they controlled.

But the Woke do not [yet] have the total political control that the Communists achieved in the USSR and elsewhere. My hubris detector is going off.

Pro 16:18  Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. 

We have the technology. We can Serve better than they are doing.

The Christian Duty to Serve and Lead

Among the writers of the far Right I see calls for a return to monarchy and aristocracy. And I see calls to let the alphas leading and the betas do the enforcing.

This is packaged with Christian Nationalism. But I am not convinced it is Biblical. The inheritance and jubilee laws in the Law of Moses are the opposite of feudal. The rich were not allowed to use their wealth to buy up land and then use the surplus to buy yet more. And the original system of government had no king. It was only after the people complained to Samuel did they get a king, and Samuel gave them a curse in the process. [1 Samuel 8]

Note also the advice Moses' father-in-law gave Moses after he saw Moses sitting all day long judging disputes:

Exo 18:18  Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone. 

Exo 18:19  Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God: 

Exo 18:20  And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do. 

Exo 18:21  Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens: 

Exo 18:22  And let them judge the people at all seasons: and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge: so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee. 

Exo 18:23  If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their place in peace. 

Exo 18:24  So Moses hearkened to the voice of his father in law, and did all that he had said. 

During the Exodus there were even rulers of ten.

And to this day, leadership duties abound. When we neglect these lower duties, we are more vulnerable to imperfection and corruption at the top. Just read the Books of Kings. There you find murder, adultery, fratricide, idol worship, and looting the country to fund a gigantic sex palace. And those were the good kings.

As we in the United States neglect our local leadership duties, too much power and duty rises to the top. Taxes and debt balloon. An unaccountable army of bureaucrats rule.

Christians are supposed to practice Self Government.

1Co 6:1  Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints? 

1Co 6:2  Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 

1Co 6:3  Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life? 

1Co 6:4  If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church. 

Christians are supposed to be in training to be kings and priests in the world to come. I have covered this subject before in my long meditation on the Afterlife:

And I'll hit the subject again in a future post on free will which is partly finished on my disk.

More Details and Coaching

I have given you a taste. Get yourself a copy of Dedication and Leadership and read it for yourself.

But even that book is incomplete. Notice the mentions of classes and training in the article above. The International Communist Conspiracy actively developed leaders, and they aren't going to develop you.

Fortunately, there are other organizations which offer similar training. The conservative Leadership Institute provides excellent courses in the nuts and bolts of political activism, with a focus on Congressional campaigns and campus activism. Nearly 30 years ago I attended their Candidate Development School. It was time well spent.

From the Leadership Institute’s Candidate Development school.

Like the Communists, the Leadership Institute mixed in ideology with training. But you don't have to be Borg. I was a Libertarian when I walked in and remained so after the talks. (Allowing in some non-Republicans allowed the Leadership Institute to maintain 501(c)3 status. So I was reasonably welcome.) And even the ideological talks I disagreed with were interesting. And it was fascinating to see newsmakers up close with their shields down. Elliot Abrams was a surprisingly funny speaker.

Many, if not all, states have similar training schools for both Republicans and Democrats. If you get involved with any environmental organization, you will probably find some activism schools there.

And back when Marshall Fritz was running the Advocates for Self-Government, they had some good persuasion training materials.

I have a private discussion board where I can provide more detailed tips and lessons learned based upon my own on the ground experiences. (I cannot do so here in public for fear of revealing my secret identity.) Any subscriber -- including free subscribers -- can join. Just go to the Substack chat area associated with this blog for further directions. See some of you on the other side.

1. Rhymes with sewage.

2. I currently do not have a copy. I gave away all my copies years ago to promising activists.

3. I have been itching to tell this joke for over three decades. There was a donut shop in Springfield VA called Donut Masters…