Two Cheers for "McCarthyism"?

National Review Online ^ | 2/26/03 | Jonah Goldberg

[bassmaner]

History has proven that the late Senator from Wisconsin wasn't a paranoid kook after all. He was a true American hero.

[Freedom4US]

The left has never come clean about this; and it's always refreshing to hear them squawk about "McCarthyism" in this day and age, as they have just LOST the debate - never let them use this phrase unchallenged, ever.

[PeoplesRep_of_LA]

I went to a public high school (in the early 90's). I'll never forget how we spent an entire class period or 2 on how the prosecution of the Rosenberg couple was one of the biggest mistakes in US history. That we should all feel guilty as Americans for being in a country that would do that.

Where is the egg on these peoples' faces after the KBG admitted EVERYTHING about those monsters was true, even not the entire story! They are directly responsible for Stalin getting the bomb in the 50's, changing the entire face of global politics. A quick execution was not fitting enough for what turned out to be two of the biggest criminals in US History.

What I would like to see is a comparision on this great Devil of the 20th century; McCarthy's claim against individuals, and the KGB records of the stories that were true. Was he always right, of course not, but people seem to forget that occassionally he was and that is very important to fight against the ostrich brigade. There were true threats amoung us, just like right now.

[quietolong]

Secrets, Lies, and Atomic Spies,.....Or... Joe McCarthy was more right than he ever knew

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/622675/posts

[backhoe]

Tailgunner Joe--Patriot Whistleblower or Right-Wing Witch-hunter?

The Rosenberg Case- Spies, Scapegoats, or something inbetween?

[ClearCase_guy]

Eastern Europe was lost to Stalin at Yalta. FDR was old and sick. His chief advisor was a communist sympathizer (famous guy, but I'm drawing a blank on his name).
In the early 1950's, the US had thermonuclear weapons and the Soviets did not. The Cold War wasn't too scary. Until the Rosenberg's gave the H-bomb to the Soviets.
Alger Hiss, Kim Philby and others really existed. The Communists WERE planting spies throughout the West.

Also, my understanding is that it has never been illegal to be a communist in the US. Even in the 1950's, Congress was not jailing people for that political affiliation. However, if people refused to talk about where their sympathies lay, then suspicions were raised. Through the Right of Free Association, some folks decided not to associate with other folks who seemed un-trustworthy. That's black-listing, and it's OK in my book.

Lastly, the attempted leftist subversion of the US did not end during the McCarthy era (far from it). The War in Vietnam was lost because leftwing sympathizers (Jane Fonda and many others) made in politically difficult to continue. South Vietnam was lost to the Communists, and millions died. Over and over we have seen how fear and death have been increased by the actions of secret leftists working against our national interests.

I think McCarthy is a hero, flawed as he was.

[Lyford]

He was a true American hero.

I disagree. I think that McCarthy did enormous damage to the anti-Communist movement in America. Not because he was wrong, but because he was a drunk, and he absolutely lied and exaggerated. Victor Hugo said that "the good must also be innocent" which is, to a certain extent, true. When McCarthy started spouting numbers that constantly changed, when he claimed to have a list that he could never produce, he created the environment and context for the entire process to be characterized as a "witch hunt." Even though, in essence, he was right - there were Communist agents in the State Department, and they were a threat to America.

My grandfather was in Washington during the 40s, working for several different Senators, and my grandparents were good friends with McCarthy. I've spoken about him with my grandmother on several different occasions, and her reaction, as someone who knew him well, was that "he had a real problem with liquor, but he was an American through and through." Based on all that I know, I buy that assessment. But, though he was brave enough to stand against the tide and speak the truth, he spoke enough un-truth to marginalize himself...

[Lyford]

Eastern Europe was lost to Stalin at Yalta.

I remember the first time I read the text of the Yalta agreement. (It was not contemporary - I'm not 40 yet). I almost threw up. What an appalling document. Arrogant and just plain evil, as we sold Eastern Europe into two generations of slavery.

FDR was old and sick. His chief advisor was a communist sympathizer (famous guy, but I'm drawing a blank on his name).

Wasn't it Hiss? Hiss was definitely part of the US delegation to Yalta - I'm thinking he was the highest ranking State Department member there, though that could easily be wrong. Or are you thinking of Averell Harriman?

[bassmaner]

McCarthy made the case over 40 years ago that the seeds of our destruction were being planted by Soviet intelligence agents through their infiltration of academia, the entertainment industry, and in high levels of government.

The noxious scions of those seeds are starting to bloom today, 12 years after the demise of the USSR: every time a so-called "peace activist" spouts his/her anti-American bilge, I think of the warnings that the late senator sounded so many years ago.

[steve-b]

I think that McCarthy did enormous damage to the anti-Communist movement in America. Not because he was wrong, but because he was a drunk, and he absolutely lied and exaggerated.... When McCarthy started spouting numbers that constantly changed, when he claimed to have a list that he could never produce, he created the environment and context for the entire process to be characterized as a "witch hunt."

DING DING DING -- We have a winner.

Frankly, I would not be surprised in the least if some dusty old document turns up in the KGB archives describing how the whole thing was set up to discredit legitimate and rational investigations into Soviet infiltration.

[Doctor Stochastic]

Perhaps Jonah Goldberg could play some solitaire?

[HighRoadToChina]

BFL

[KC_Conspirator]

I want to say that it was Whitaker Chambers and he visited Moscow right after one of the Big 3 Conferences, probably Tehran. I think Hiss was in the state department at this time. I just love how old Soviet documents are showing that Hiss and almost all other accused of being communist spies were in fact communist spies. In fact, I believe Hiss's codname was "Garnet". (From Vasili Mitrohkin's "The Sword and the Shield", straight from the KGB archives").

[colorado tanker]

Also, my understanding is that it has never been illegal to be a communist in the US. Even in the 1950's, Congress was not jailing people for that political affiliation.

Correctamundo. The major piece of "McCarthyite" legislation was an act requiring communists to register, but it bounced around the courts, including SCOTUS, for years and never did go into effect. Also, there was no "blacklist;" the movie writers were fired by the studios because they thought the public wouldn't pay to watch movies written by commies, but you never hear about that from the Hollyweirdos.

What the left describes as a reign of terror really didn't amount to much in fact.

[weegee]

Why did the term Borking get named for the victim and not after one of the Rats who was doing the political harassing?

[Lyford]

I want to say that it was Whitaker Chambers and he visited Moscow right after one of the Big 3 Conferences, probably Tehran

Uh, no. Chambers never worked for the government. He was a writer for a communist paper ("The Daily Worker", I think, but my copy of Witness is downstairs, and I'm not going to get it now...) and an agent for a Russian communist spy ring, but never a sleeper working for the government...

[quietolong]

It was Harry Dexter White That was FDR’s closest adviser. And he was a KGB agent. And also according to the Venona transcripts. He under orders from Moscow. Inserted language into the talks with Japan that would be totally unacceptable to them. So the US and Japan would not reach an agreement. Thereby precipitating Pearl Harbor

[HighRoadToChina]

"Not because he was wrong, but because he was a drunk, and he absolutely lied and exaggerated."

That's a bunch of bull. He was not wrong about the Communist threat. The whole of China of literally turned over to the Communist through Communist sympathizers like Marshall and others in the State Dept.

McCarthy only became drunk when they (the Communist sympathetic media smeared him).

[chuckles]

This would be the perfect subject for Fox News channel to investigate for an hour special. Somebody fair and balanced should put the truth out about him in chronological order. He really did expose alot of card carrying commies, but it went to his head to stay in the limelight, and he certainly wasn't up to the task. And everything he feared was true. The entertainment industry and academia was packed with them and of course, still is. Now they have a voter base called the DNC and can be elected to congress without even having to explain why they lionize Karl Marx. Some don't even pretend to be Democrats like Sanders from Vermont. They are so prevalent today that they claim the center, and we are relgated to the extreme right just because we don't want to burn the flag.

[Lyford]

"Not because he was wrong, but because he was a drunk, and he absolutely lied and exaggerated."

That's a bunch of bull. He was not wrong about the Communist threat.

I didn't say he was. In fact, I specifically said that he was right. But he was still a drunk who lied and exaggerated. He waved a piece of paper around, and said that it was a list of 187 card-carrying communists in the state department. Later it was 210. And he never, ever, produced it.

McCarthy only became drunk when they (the Communist sympathetic media smeared him).

He only became drunk when he drank. Which he did long before he became a national figure, according to my grandmother, who knew him well.