Reading Hillary Rodham's hidden thesis

[liberal N proud]

I am sure the Hillary haters will love this...

MSNBC

WELLESLEY, Mass. — The senior thesis of Hillary D. Rodham, Wellesley College class of 1969, has been speculated about, spun, analyzed, debated, criticized and defended. But rarely has it been read, because for the eight years of Bill Clinton’s presidency it was locked away.

As forbidden fruit, the writings of a 21-year-old college senior, examining the tactics of radical community organizer Saul D. Alinsky, have gained mythic status among her critics — a “Rosetta Stone,” in the words of one, that would allow readers to decode the thinking of the former first lady and 2008 presidential candidate.

Despite the fervent interest in the thesis, few realize that it is no longer kept under lock and key. As MSNBC.com found, it is available to anyone who visits the archive room of the prestigious women’s college outside Boston. With Clinton’s opponents in the 2008 presidential race looking for the next “Swift Boat” attack ad, and the senator herself trying to cast off her liberal image, Clinton's 92-page thesis is certain to be read and reread by opposition researchers and reporters visiting the campus.

But can an academic paper from nearly 40 years ago really unlock the politics and character of any former student, much less the early Democratic front-runner for the White House?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17388372/

[acmavm]

1. Early democratic front-runner? Sheesh, those of us with any

intelligence know its WAY TO EARLY to be calling the 'election'. The only place she's the 'front-runner' is in the media. Most Americans are just watching and waiting.

Same goes for Obama. His fans are the only ones who are all excited and practically have him in the White House.

[papau]

2. Great story - it should stop some slime from both the right - - and the left n/t

n/t

[PhilipShore]

3. David Brock, in his 1996 biography, called Hillary "Alinsky's daughter"

MSNBC

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17388372/

[Dhalgren]

4. The only "Hillary haters" who might "love" this are the extreme

right-wing sort. This piece, to me, ends up being a fairly pro-Hillary piece. Anyone who would find anything at all to criticize Ms Clinton for in this is looking awfully hard for something - anything - to hit Hillary with, and that's just stupid. This was a college paper from 40 years ago for gods' sake! My problems with Hilary are her politics right now, but to try and make something damning out of a (from what I can tell) very well done college paper is ludicrous...

[wyldwolf]

5. I hope things written 40 years ago can't unlock the character and politics of someone today

I mean, I'm a little embarassed over blog posts of mine from just four years ago.

[mzteris]

6. oh puhleeze -

who here is the same as they were 40 years ago.

When I was in college in the 70's I was a repuking war-monger AFROTC type. The complete antithesis of who I am now.

[Alamom]

7. SWIFTBOATING: Senator Clinton & Senator Obama. (2 for 1)

Same story, 3rd page.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17388372/page/3/

Turning to an expert at using Alinsky's tactic -- picking a target, freezing it, personalizing it and polarizing it -- Chris Lacivita can also envision such an ad.

Lacivita co-produced the "Swift Boat" ads in the 2004 presidential race questioning Democratic Sen. John Kerry’s Vietnam service. He told MSNBC.com that no fact from a candidate's life is too old for
negative advertising.


"I think the last election cycle proved that there's no statute of limitations," said the Republican political consultant. "What someone did or said 35 years ago is certainly fair game, especially if you're running for president of the United States.


He began to brainstorm what such an ad might look like:


"Maybe you look at the contrast. What year did Hillary write this paper? 1969.

"And where was John McCain in 1969? A POW in Vietnam."


(I doubt he will miss this)



http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17388372/page/3/


A decade later, another political science major started out on the path that Hillary Rodham had rejected, going to work for a group in the Alinsky mold. That was Barack Obama, now a U.S. senator from Illinois and her leading opponent for the Democratic nomination. After attending Columbia University, he worked as an organizer on the South Side of Chicago for the Developing Communities Project. Obama and others of the post-Alinsky generation described their work in the 1990 book “After Alinsky: Community Organizing in Illinois,” in which Obama wrote that he longed for ways to close the gap between community organizing and national politics. After three years of organizing, he turned to Harvard Law School and then the Illinois legislature.


http://civic.uis.edu/Alinsky/AlinskyHomePage.htm

After Alinsky:
Community Organizing in Illinois

(Full text available from links below)
Edited by Peg Knoepfle, (c) 1990, Illinois Issues

Featuring a chapter by Barack Obama
and an interview with Tom Gaudette


http://civic.uis.edu/Alinsky/AlinskyObamaChapter1990.htm

The Obama Chapter

[JNelson6563]

8. Hmmmm.

Well I am no worshiper of Hillary so I am sure, in the eyes of some, that makes me a "Hillary Hater". :eyes: With that said, I'd say anyone who forms a negative opinion about anybody else based on a paper written 40 years ago was never going to be a supporter anyhow.

I can't see it playing into my view one way or the other. I hope Hillary doesn't get the nom and if she does I will try hard to self-medicate enough to go pull the lever for her on election day.

Julie--determined to be a team player no matter how much medicating may be necessary