Voting Station

W. Cleon Skousen

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Educator

The Resume

    (January 20, 1913-January 9, 2006)
    Born in Raymond, Alberta, Canada
    Birth name was Willard Cleon Skousen
    Theologian and political theorist
    Noted anti-communist and supporter of the John Birch Society
    Wrote 'The Naked Communist' (1962), 'The Third Thousand Years' (1964), 'The Five Thousand Year Leap' (1981), 'The Making of America' (1985), and 'So You Want to Raise a Boy' (1994)

Why he might be annoying:

    He was a brazen conspiracy theorist.
    His writings were shamelessly pimped by Glenn Beck.
    His books contain gems like 'American slave children were freer than white non-slaves.'
    He was one of the earliest advocates for privatizing Social Security.
    He spawned the belief that the Constitution is a divinely inspired document under siege.
    He criticized President Nixon and Henry Kissinger for pursuing diplomatic relations with China, calling it treason.
    His views were extreme enough for members of the John Birch Society and Latter Day Saints to distance themselves from him.
    For example, he wrote an article defending the LDS for their refusal to ordain blacks into its priesthood ('The Communist Attack on the Mormons'). Less than ten years later, the Church reversed its position.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He spoke out against communism.
    He was a communications agent in the FBI under J. Edgar Hoover.
    He taught at Brigham Young University for 16 years.
    He was critical of Wall Street and billionaires.
    He was cited as an authority on Mormon theology.
    Orrin Hatch eulogized him from the Senate floor.
    He was not alive to see the sales for his book 'The 5,000 Year Leap' skyrocket after Glenn Beck plugged it on-air.
    He expressed concern that his writings were taken out of context by extremists on the right.

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 13 Votes: 92.31% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 7 Votes: 28.57% Annoying