Keep the Bastards Out
Encyclopedia
Keep the Bastards Out or KBO is a fictional organization invented by
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
columnist Emmett Watson
. The KBO was a tongue-in-cheek
group which never actually existed, but which expressed his frustration (and the frustration of many Seattle residents) with the influx of newcomers to the Puget Sound
area from out-of-state. Watson periodically wrote about the group in his column for more than a decade in the 1980s and 1990s. The name was chosen in ominous emulation of the Soviet Union's KGB
.
The KBO's raison d'être was to protest the irritating and prolonged immigration of newcomers into the Puget Sound region, especially to Seattle. They clogged the roads, spent too much money bidding up prices, did not understand the "NorthWest way of life" and just generally made trouble, ... hence the KBO's mission statement. Watson periodically suggested actions that KBO members could take to make "immigrants" (perhaps especially California
ns) uncomfortable, and, hopefully, encourage them to leave. Readers and others occasionally observed that it was all a sort of joke, and Watson sometimes responded that people could think what they liked, but that he would continue to promote the KBO as one way to deal with the decrease in the quality of life in the Pacific Northwest
and especially in Western Washington.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is an online newspaper and former print newspaper covering Seattle, Washington, United States, and the surrounding metropolitan area...
columnist Emmett Watson
Emmett Watson
Emmett Watson was a newspaper columnist in Seattle, Washington whose columns ran in a number of Seattle newspapers over a span of more than fifty years...
. The KBO was a tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek is a phrase used as a figure of speech to imply that a statement or other production is humorously intended and it should not be taken at face value. The facial expression typically indicates that one is joking or making a mental effort. In the past, it may also have indicated...
group which never actually existed, but which expressed his frustration (and the frustration of many Seattle residents) with the influx of newcomers to the Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
area from out-of-state. Watson periodically wrote about the group in his column for more than a decade in the 1980s and 1990s. The name was chosen in ominous emulation of the Soviet Union's KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
.
The KBO's raison d'être was to protest the irritating and prolonged immigration of newcomers into the Puget Sound region, especially to Seattle. They clogged the roads, spent too much money bidding up prices, did not understand the "NorthWest way of life" and just generally made trouble, ... hence the KBO's mission statement. Watson periodically suggested actions that KBO members could take to make "immigrants" (perhaps especially California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
ns) uncomfortable, and, hopefully, encourage them to leave. Readers and others occasionally observed that it was all a sort of joke, and Watson sometimes responded that people could think what they liked, but that he would continue to promote the KBO as one way to deal with the decrease in the quality of life in the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
and especially in Western Washington.