Full circle: When I was a kid, church warned against commies and Russians.

I don't remember ever hearing about the dangers of communism or Russians as the enemy.

What in the SAM Hill happened to THAT church?

so I closed my bible at 18 and never went back.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) persons in the Russian Federation have faced increasing restrictions of their rights in recent years. Although male homosexual acts were decriminalized in 1993,[1] there are no laws protecting against discrimination or harassment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.[citation needed] Same-sex marriages and civil unions are not recognized. Many local legislatures have passed laws prohibiting dissemination of information about homosexuality.[3][4][5][6][7] Moscow's top court has ruled that no gay pride parades may be held in Moscow for 100 years.[8] In 2013, Russia's government adopted a federal bill banning the distribution of "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" to minors. The law imposes heavy fines for using the media or internet to promote "non-traditional relations."[9] Human rights activist Lyudmila Alexeyeva called the proposed law "a step toward the Middle Ages,"[10] and international rights groups have said the current situation in Russia has become the worst human rights climate of the post-Soviet era.[9]

...

I mean, it's really a rebranding. RED, like "The Little Red book," RED, like "dirty reds," RED even like less than totally red in the usa, e.g. "pinkos" in the 70s, a la Archie Bunker.

They have turned the memes upside down and have thrown away American jobs in favor of communists, who they now embrace.

Major mindfuck, but they've done it.

Or just goobering?

find a Republican with a red tie. After the Soviet disintegration red ties became almost a uniform for Republicans.

The John Birch Society, which was preaching against "dam librul" judges and communism in the 50s, was begun by the father of the Koch brothers. So, the situation is even more strange than having come full circle because at the end of circling things back around, we find the children of the guy who began this craziness are industrialists who don't complain about our relationship with the Red Chinese. In fact, their father had business dealings with Stalin.

It's also interesting that they modeled the John Birch Society after the organization of the communist party of the 1920s through 1940s - independent cells recruiting hard core members - because it was very successful for the American communists.

There were Birchers across the street from my family in the 60s. I remember being given a big box of books by them - I loved books - and being invited over a week or so later to discuss the topics covered by the books. What I discovered was deep information about the communist party of that era: how they were organized, what they sought, lots of detailed info. All of this was intended, of course, to scare me into wanting to fight communism with them as a cell member (yeah, and I was maybe 14 years old).

When I went back to see them (my parents insisted because they were "such nice people" I told them that I didn't want to learn about communism and that I questioned their motives .. why were they so interested in teaching their neighbors about communism? What side were they on, anyway?

Anyway, the entire thing has come full circle. The glorious capitalists who hated communism so much then have their manufacturing plants there now. Wal-Mart's entire purchasing operation operates out of a port in mainland China (pretty sure it used to be on West coast of the US but has relocated over there).

Maybe those birds were all of a feather even back in the 50s and are just now learning it. I see no difference between them.

One of America's biggest conglomerates, Procter & Gamble, has long made a practice of flooding all levels of its market segment-- high-end, low-end, in-between, with products that appear to be separate brands fighting each other for market share. Meanwhile, they blocked out many legitimate contenders, and most of the "wars" they fight are among their own brands. It convinces lots of people.