ACORN Buried Under Dirt and Debt

The recent news that ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) is shutting down should not be considered a completed victory for those who love liberty. To review the precipitating event of the demise of ACORN, James O’Keefe’s and his associates videotaped an ACORN office approving of prostitution, child procurement for sexual exploitation, and advising on tax evasion. See twenty minutes of videos below, which are overproduced, stylized (Mr. O’Keefe did not wear the pimp coat shown in the video to the ACORN office), purposive, discarded by the court for heavy editing, and suggested a bill of attainder. In the war of ideas and policy Sharky&Sharky is not sure if O’Keefe's actions are perfidious (illegal) or spying (legal) with regard to ACORN. These tapes are stressful to watch.


ACORN funding has been terminated by Congress, in contradiction to two court orders, and donations to ACORN have greatly dwindled. The impact of significant funding reductions is the closing of ACORN. This is stated by Mr. Whelan, ACORN Communications Director speaking for the Acorn Association Board, in an email:

The ACORN Association Board met on Sunday March 21 and approved a set of steps to responsibly manage the process of bringing its operations to a close over the coming months. These include:

• Closing ACORN’s remaining state affiliates and field offices by April 1st; and
• Developing a plan to resolve all outstanding debts, obligations and other issues.

ACORN’s members have a great deal to be proud of–from promoting to homeownership to helping rebuild New Orleans, from raising wages to winning safer streets, from training community leaders to promoting voter participation—ACORN members have worked hard to create stronger to communities, a more inclusive democracy, and a more just nation.

Why does Sharky&Sharky say that ACORN has not gone away? First no one in ACORN has been arrested. Thus the people that comprised ACORN are still active in their communities as social and political activist, fundraisers, and religious leaders. They will return in a different guise with a different name. Although ACORN activists do not call themselves or any many cases think of themselves as socialists or communists the outcomes of their actions are the same. Their actions increase the number people that are dependent on the government rather than their own liberty and resources, thereby increasing the size of government, increasing centralization, and increasingly taking resources from those that desire to control their own liberty. The outcome is that government becomes larger than the free individual. Why do socialists and ACORN activist pursue their agenda? Deep in their social souls they believe that an American Utopia will come about when a national equality is achieved. However, in order to achieve a national equality of Americans you need to empower the US Government to enforce equality as a right not something earned. The outcome of the actions necessary to enforcement equality at the same time constrain and choke of liberty. Thus Government’s purpose is perverted; instead of being the guardian of liberty Government must constrain liberty. Government rather than the individual citizen becomes the source of liberty. Liberty is like reputation once you lose it it is very difficult to get it back.

Mr. O’Keefe has been arrested and is currently out on bail for maliciously interfering with a telephone system operated and controlled by the US government in Senator Mary Landrieu’s office. See No Wiretap Article. Sharky&Sharky applaud Mr. O’Keefe for pursuing one of the three foundations of this blog, Pursuit of the Truth. The other foundations are Maximization of Liberty and the Elimination of the Financial hosing of some American People. House Republican Leader John Boehner analysis shows ACORN received $31M from 1998 to 2008. The question is will the $3.83T 2011 budget have something for the sons of ACORN.

©Sharky&Sharky