McCarthyism - The Right's Badge Of Honor

PipeBombNews ^ | May 20. 2003 | William A. Mayer

[backhoe]

Hello, Dave... I put this together a while back:

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

[Tailgunner Joe]

bttt

[steve-b]

Even PBS's series "NOVA" has an episode that says McCarthy was right about the Communist infiltration of the US government (just wrong about who the perps were).

He was not "right" in any meaningful sense of the word, any more than a quack who feeds people snake oil is "right" when one of his patients happens to recover. Basically, his accusations were the equivalent of tabloid psychic predictions that occasionally score lucky hits -- and did great damage to the cause of legitimate and rational investigation into real Communist infiltration.

[DPB101]

Thing for the flag. More of Crouch's testimony:

>Mr Crouch . . .There are many other Communists who were employed by Dr. Oppenheimer and also, according to the California committee's information, Dr. Oppenheimer was active in urging atomic scientists to join a Communist espionage apparatus called the FAECT--Federation of Architects, Engineers, Chemists, and Technicians--headed by Marcel Scherer, who had been trained in the espionage schools in Moscow and who had been in charge of infiltration of scientists since 1928, to my personal knowledge.

The Chairman. This FAECT was headed by a man who went to the Moscow School of Espionage and Sabotage?

Mr. Crouch. Yes.

The. Chairman. That is the Lenin school?

Mr. Crouch. Yes.

The Chairman. Where is he now, do you know?

Mr. Crouch. He is in New York City at the present time.

The Chairman. Is he connected with atomic work now, do you know?

Mr. Crouch. I don't know.

The Chairman. What is his name?

Mr. Crouch. Marcel Scherer.

The Chairman. Oh, yes.

Mr. Crouch. I personally participated in discussions that set up this apparatus for scientific espionage in 1928 and was present at discussions between Scherer and William Z. Foster, and Scherer and Communist international representatives from Moscow, when this project was approved.

Julius Rosenberg was a member of FAECT. David Bohm, who worked on the Manhattan project was an active member of the FAECT as well. He took the fifth when called before Congress. Perhaps because of Albert Einstein's support, Bohm was acquitted of contempt of Congress. He left America and did well teaching in Brazil, Israel and finally the UK.

Communists of that era in their own words:

The Albert & Vera Weisbord Foundation Archives

Haven't read it all but "Afro-American Guerilla Warfare (Draft)" is chilling. I. The Fascist Tendencies of Roosevelt. is more amusing (and not that off target).

[VOA]

Basically, his accusations were the equivalent of tabloid psychic predictions that occasionally
score lucky hits...

Which is why PBS said that McCarthy was dead wrong when he pointed the finger at
individual targets. He totally blew that assignment.


...and did great damage to the cause of legitimate and rational investigation
into real Communist infiltration.

The PBS NOVA episode also discussed this, in light of the inherent conflict between
the "need to know" for an oversight body such as the Congress and a "need to keep secret"
investigative agency such as the FBI or CIA.

IIRC, the tone the NOVA special took in this area was that maybe the FBI/CIA should have
let McCarthy in on a bit of what they actually knew...I suppose with the thought
McCarthy might quiet down, knowing the infiltators were being watched.
How much good that would have done? I suspect that sharing secrets with an alcoholic
guy searching for the spotlight...probably would have led to worse consequences.

McCarthy did lots of damage, not only in ruining the lives of many innocents
and also making anti-Communists a target of ridicule.


But, all said and done, it did freak me out to hear PBS, often an outlet for apologists
for Communists, conclude that McCarthy's ranting about Communist infilitrators
in the US government did reflect what has been learned from many sources, such
as the Venona intercepts.

In McCarthy's case, it was a real-life case of what Woody Allen once said:
"Just because you're paranoid, it doesn't mean they aren't out to get you."

[HISSKGB]

Through manipulation only the communists of that era escaped from the executions they deserved.

As the one link recounted, they bragged about coming South to unionize in spite of the fact they lied to the workers about supporting them and also murdered law enforcement folk. Now I understand why so many workers in the South hate unions, it is because of the crimes of the immoral and unprincipled commie union leaders.

[DPB101]

McCarthy did lots of damage, not only in ruining the lives of many innocents .. .

Such as?

The first Hollywood blacklist was a decade before McCarthy by communists against those not in the party. It was vicious. Rumors were floated that those who didn't go along with the party line supported Hitler.

The first Congressional "witch hunt" was led by Samuel Dickstein (D-NY) against German Americans, anti-communists and those opposed to entering WWII. Dickstein was a KGB agent (code name:crook). When he chaired an immigration committee, he sold Soviet agents visas. He was never chastised, never caught and his name never became a household word.

Btw...the word "McCarthyism" was coined by the Communist Party USA and first appeared in print in the Daily Worker.

[Grampa Dave]

Thanks for the ping and for being such a great resource on this issue. Thanks for sharing with us!

[marron]

We need to stop running from McCarthy. We need to aggressively dig back into the archives of that era, and put it all out on the table. All of it, of course.

We need to clearly document the Soviet death toll, we need to document for a new generation the how and who of Soviet espionage, and how high and how deep it reached. It actually is a fascinating story.

We need to document for a new generation how it affected our wartime agreements. We need to document how much of Hollywood then, as now, sided with genocide against their own country. How many of the Democrats were open traitors. All of this needs to be explored. McCarthy was a flawed vessel as are we all. But he was not a Stalinist. And most of his targets were.

[DPB101]

We need to aggressively dig back into the archives of that era, and put it all out on the table

I agree 100%. Noticed that liberals go boinkers when this topic is mentioned. They have no defense. That is why the "so-called" Senate historian tried to spin the release of these transcripts and handed out talking points for all the media to use. I don't think one journalist in a hundred actually read the testimony. I've written to half a dozen reporters from small town papers across America asking if they read the transcript before writing their hit piece on McCarthy. Not one has answered yet.

The transcripts are devastating and puncture all the liberal myths about McCarthy. He didn't badger witnesses, he protected the animonity of gays, over and over he warned those testifying that being in the CPUSA was no crime but lying about it was and if they simply told the truth, he would see nobody knew they had been party members. And he kept his word. This thread might interest you:

Thirteenth Report of the Senate Fact-Finding Subcommittee on Un-American Activities--California

The report, from 1965, was sealed until a few years ago (2000, I believe). It lays out in detail how the student protests at Berkeley and other CA universities--as well as around the world--were organized in the Kremlin.Lots of names we know, including Treuhalf--the Stalinist lawyer who hired Hillary Clinton as an intern.

[jpl]

It's hard to believe, but there are actually still people in this country today pushing the lie that Alger Hiss was innocent of any wrongdoing, even though they know better. These people may not be traitors, but they come pretty damn close in my book.

[John Lenin]

“…the more we learn about communism in America, the more McCarthy is proven to have been accurate in his charges. Many people in the State Department truly were security risks; there were individual cases of spies and traitors; and there were many sympathizers with influence over American foreign policy. Based on information not available while the man behind these claims was being condemned…” - Arthur Herman, Joseph McCarthy: Re-examining The Life and Legacy of America’s Most Hated Senator. As reviewed by the publisher, Simon & Schuster.

I believe we are in the same position right now, maybe Newt was trying to get this point across a few weeks ago when he suggested a shakeup of the State Dept. Collin Powel did Bush I in and it looks like he's about to do the same thing to W.

[johnqueuepublic]

Read the Sacred Secrets & Special Tasks along with the McCarthy memoirs as well as the newly declassified stuff which is available in pdf format at senate.gov or whatever their site addy is.

[johnqueuepublic]

Its pretty compelling, sudaplatov is an old commie who just happens to tell the truth on this item.

[johnqueuepublic]

I agree.

[johnqueuepublic]

My pleasure, I'm just a fan.

[johnqueuepublic]

Was not aware of that program, like NOVA very much however.

[johnqueuepublic]

I think socialism naturally progresses and becomes more and more intollerant, thats where we are today, intollerant socialist who say they want diversity except for the christians,gun rights people, the patriots, traditionalists, monotheists, nuclear families, anti baby killers etc.

[johnqueuepublic]

I think you are wrong, McCarthy said there tremendous commie influences in the fed gov and that is exactly what was the case.

[johnqueuepublic]

I fully agree.

One thing this essay didnt get into, probably for lack of space, jeeeez who wants to read a 5,000 word editorial....is that Alger Hiss briefed the Soviets right before Yalta so they totally new our negotiating positions.

That combined with Roosevelts soft headedness with regard to Stalin sunk us into the cold war.