Day -O! AARP goes bananas for Belafonte

I have been a member of the American Association of Retired Persons, more commonly known as “AARP” for a good many years having joined back when the lower age threshold for membership was fifty-five, reduced some years later to fifty.

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At the time I joined that organization, billed as being the place for seniors to belong, it promised assistance with seniors’ issues with our government, mostly our Congress.  They promised to be advocates for our protection and welfare.  They were mostly just a lobbying force that advocated better conditions and programs for the elderly.   As the years progressed and membership increased, AARP became very much involved in government legislation and more and more programs were initiated “in-house” such as insurance, travel and entertainment programs.  These added packages were offered at prices that were less expensive than commercial offerings of the same services so they were quickly bought up by the membership.   As the programs and government lobbying became more successful the treasury of AARP began to flourish and it soon boasted of multi-millions for use in “promoting” seniors needs.  It also, much to the chagrin of many members, provided funds for political maneuvering, nearly all, liberal causes.   With the advancement of this connection, many of the AARP’s ideals took a sharp turn to the left and liberal ideas and philosophies began to dominate the AARP agenda for seniors.   This was when I discovered that they were using my money to help fund ideas that were exactly opposite of mine.  My complaints to them were met with double-talk and obfuscation, but they did not stop catering to the liberal way of life.   Near the end of calendar year 2005 the AARP proudly announced its list of Persons of the Year.  To my utter disbelief and surprise one of the nominated “persons” was Calypso singer and anti-American Harry Belafonte.    Here was this organization created for the so-called betterment of senior citizens in the United States primarily, handing out one of their highest awards of praise to a highly controversial performer who was not a popular choice for such an award among the less brainwashed AARP’s members.   He was blessed from a young age to be a favorite of Americans for his velvety singing voice and he quickly became a star of that medium.  He lived a good life in America which had embraced him and his talents and thrived financially because of it.    But somewhere along the way he forgot the country that made him wealthy and loved by his countrymen and women and he began to preach hate for it saying that America oppresses people and wrecks the planet, such as: ‘‘I'm aware how vast America's villainy extends itself because I see it in the faces of the wretched millions who make up poverty globally’’.  Belafonte also called Colin Powell a house slave, heaped praise on Fidel Castro, and called President Bush evil. He's even gone so far as to compare black Bush Administration officials to Jews working for Hitler.   He has made statements opposing the U.S. embargo on Cuba, praising Soviet peace initiatives, attacking the U.S. invasion of Grenada, praising the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, many of whom were official members of the Communist Party USA or affiliated with other socialist or anarchist organizations, as well as honoring Ethel and Julius Rosenberg in addition to Fidel Castro.   In 2006 Belafonte, actor Danny Glover, and activist/professor Cornel West met with President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez.  During the meeting Belafonte was quoted as saying, "No matter what the greatest tyrant in the world, the greatest terrorist in the world, George W. Bush says, we're here to tell you: not hundreds, not thousands, but millions of the American people... support your revolution.” During a ML King Day speech at Duke University in 2006, Belafonte compared the American government to the 9/11 hijackers, saying, "What is the difference between that terrorist and other terrorists?" Do those comments deserve a ‘Citizen of the Year’ award from AARP?  I didn’t believe they did, so I queried AARP about their decision and did not receive an answer for weeks.  When I wrote the second time I advised them that if they were going to stick by their decision on the award that I would cancel my membership.  Their answer, though a bit confusing left no doubt that they would NOT rescind the award. I kept my promise and canceled my membership as I won’t be associated with any group that would honor and praise a person that hates the United States, particularly as violently as Harry Belafonte does.  There are many senior citizen’s organizations already in existence and many more that are being formed to handle all of the requests from seniors who have left AARP and hope for a non-partisan group that would have as their mission just the interests of senior citizens and not anarchist, un-Americans such as Belafonte.