Alan Stang Passes Away at 80

"Your intrepid Correspondent"

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 05:45:43 +0100

Alan came to NM "your intrepid correspondent" reporting the other side of the story that local media had not. Local papers ran headlines about a renegade bunch who had shot up a NM court house, a state policeman and a deputy sheriff had been shot, and a bunch of talk about Land Grants. Alan wrote about and told Albuquerqueans what he had easily uncovered that the papers in New York City and in Albuquerque were not telling us. Alan had been on local talk radio a day or to before his speech. The place was packed with hundreds of people. I was standing by the door amazed at the numbers coming in to listen to a John Birch speaker. In walked in this 20-ish college looking man with his friends. A tobacco pipe was sticking out of his mouth and with a raised eyebrow looked around at the crowd. He wore a tweed wool jacket and a vest right out of scene from a 1960's Perry Mason show. With his pipe in his hand he said with an air of disdain: " I can't buy all this conspiracy going back to 1776." The topic that evening was not on 1776, but centered on a different plot of the world, this one was not in Bavaria but in New Mexico. It included all the suspense and mistery of a great novel and the protaganist who had uncovered the plot told us about the bullet riddled court house, two shot police officers,another one of them pitol whipped;people taken hostage by the renegades, a chase through the Northern New Mexico mountains after the renegades by the army national guard mounted on tanks, the governor and his wife. Earl Stanley Gardner could not have written a more thrilling novel than the events that Alan wrote about for AmericanOpinion and told us about it that evening at that packed hotel conference room where the young man with the pipe got a look at how reporters file their stories and tell them. - Lee Gonzales

Alan Stang - OSHA fighters and TRIMers

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 04:35:51 +0100

Valentines Day and Alan Stang Valentine's Day and Alan was in Albuquerque to deliver a speech on Tax reform. The sponsors were TRIM, an adjunct of The John Birch Society. It was a dinner speech full of guests. The lady who was to introduce Alan had spent part of the day getting to know Alan. She and her husband got to know this fine human being quite well but forgot how quick his wit was. A dinner & speech function had been arranged by myself and the other committee members for Alan to speak on Tax reform. The lady got up to introduce Alan by saying "Alan stole my heart." The napkins at the table were shaped like a valentine and Alan handed it to her and said: "here's your heart back." Alan was in town to interview a man for American Opinion magazine who had held off the OSHA-crat "safety" inspector along with my friend, (chapter leader of The JBS),for moral support, and the two had chased off the government man by a simple question:"Where is your search warrant?" Alan delighted us with his account of the man in the canyon and his menangerie of animals he had around his property. One of which Alan referred to as the canyon man's "attack goat." OSHA stayed away. - Lee Gonzales

It's just too, too bad - - -

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 08:31:39 +0100

- - - that we never hear of the passing of truth tellers like this man and instead have a steady stream of wretched, useless cyphers like Michael Jackson and all his ilk jammed into our faces. So much for the "impartial" left wing/communist controlled media. - danwhitehead1

Correction Please

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 18:15:43 +0100

Dear Jack and wonderful friends, I won't make this too long, wanted to point out one of the incredible events of his last week. I am remembering the life of Gary Allen and his close friendship with Alan. They were a pair. He lived in Seal Beach, OC, and he was so beloved by members. Orange County was special because it was where the Society decided to see what real money could do for a congressional election. Remember how the members would confuse their two names and the difference in their sizes made it even funnier. So many wonderful memories of meetings, etc. in OC. Well, that is where we spent the last week together. Our son, Douglas Patton, lives in Huntington Beach and we were there to see their baby, Clarice. We were also hoping to defeat the dreaded c------. There are too many details to mention here. I just thought that the last place his physical presence was on this earth was worth mentioning. He always loved the members. I am hoping that many who served with him will send the stories of the fun we all had. Campers, chapter leaders, readers--the ones who are still with us--please share your memories. If anyone knows about Barbara Allen please send me details. Alan was 77. stangmemorial@hotmail.com Gail Stang - Mrs. Alan Stang

Farewell, Alan

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 04:11:01 +0100

When I first joined the JBS in New York in 1971, Alan was the Birch speaker and writer I most identified with. I was only 23 and lived on Manhattan's Upper East Side and like most residents of New York, I thought the boundries of the civilized world were Boston and to the north and Washington to the south, all territory beyond those cities being inhabited mostly by either cowboys, Indians, or hillbillies! To me, veteran American Opinion writers like Medford Evans and E. Merrill Root were fossils out of touch with modern American society (I would later grow enough to appreciate them). I thought a hip, youngish Jewish writer from New York was just what the JBS and American Opinion needed to connect with the younger set. I eventually met Alan and worked with him (as a typesetter) on his book, The Highest Virtue. Years later, I was sorry to learn of his break with the JBS. Even when he disagreed with me (via the Internet) he did it in a very civil manner and paid me several compliments while taking issue with my opinions. I always found him likeble and am sorry to see him depart this world. - FloridaWarren

We will miss you Alan.

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 22:32:27 +0100

We will miss you Alan. Pinky Ballroom Dance Teacher - Ballroom Dance