History Channel 8 PM! Greenglass to say his lies sent Ethel Rosenberg to the electric chair.

The History Channel ^ | 6/19/03 | History Channel

[DPB101]

Thursday, June 19 @ 8pm ET/PT

David Greenglass: Twice a Traitor

On June 19, 1953, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed for passing secrets of the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union. In their trial, the primary witness against Ethel was her brother, David Greenglass. Greenglass was also convicted of spying and sentenced to prison, but he was released in 1960. Now, he's finally telling his side of the story.

This is David Greenglass's extraordinary story, including the shocking revelation that he lied on the stand and sent his own sister to the electric chair! TV G

[x]

This is the David Brock situation. Brock says "I lied for the right-wing." But was he lying then or is he lying now? Brock admits was willing to lie then for his rightist convictions maybe he's perfectly capable of lying today for his leftist beliefs. So it is with Greenglass.

But the crucial thing for Greenglass now is that his testimony helped send his sister to the electric chair. Whether she was guilty of espionage or not, he's probably carrying a lot of guilt that he has to resolve in some way or other, especially if he'd been led to believe that she would have been spared. Even if she was guilty, David Greenglass might feel like he's the one who's done something wrong that he needs to atone for.

[MEG33]

I saw him speak on the History channel and he sounds almost flip about it.You are looking for a conscience that wasn't there when he betrayed his country or his sister.That he lies has been established by his actions.Who can tell when and why!I don't think he minds making the prosecution look bad.Brock almost comes off as someone who has converted and joined a cult.

[I_Love_My_Husband]

Did anyone watch this? What did he say?

[HISSKGB]

Unrepentant communist Eric Foner of Columbia University writes much for the History Channel. The Foner family have been influential communists in NYC.

[bvw]

Doesn't count. Not officially. Korea was a "police action" whatever the heck that is. On the record, the SOVIETS were our allies.

[bvw]

We were at best *intense* competitors with the Soviets. That does NOT make spying on their behalf -- even against our interests -- treason.

While you do hang enemy spies during wartime -- because we had never declared a war on the Soviets, but had in fact fought the most recent "official" war alongside of them, they wre not our *official* enemy.

[MEG33]

Yawn

[HISSKGB]

Espionage is a crime.

Why are you using word games to minimize their guilt?

[youngjim]

You're splitting hairs. So we don't kill all spies anymore--wasn't Jonathan Pollard (Jewish) a spy for Israel--our ally? That we were "at best" intense competitors with the Soviets is completely laughable. The Rosenbergs gave them the atomic bomb. Many were worried at the time that the Soviets would give the Chinese the bomb to blow up our troops in Korea. Against that backdrop, the lives of two malcontent spies meant little. They could have cooperated, they chose not to and sealed their own fate.

No doubt, yer knickers are in a knot since we haven't found the WMD yet.

BTW the show will be rebroadcast @ 11:00 CDT.

[youngjim]

You're splitting hairs. So we don't kill all spies anymore--wasn't Jonathan Pollard (Jewish) a spy for Israel--our ally? That we were "at best" intense competitors with the Soviets is completely laughable. The Rosenbergs gave them the atomic bomb. Many were worried at the time that the Soviets would give the Chinese the bomb to blow up our troops in Korea. Against that backdrop, the lives of two malcontent spies meant little. They could have cooperated, they chose not to and sealed their own fate.

No doubt, yer knickers are in a knot since we haven't found the WMD yet.

BTW the show will be rebroadcast @ 11:00 CDT.

[DPB101]

In the early 1800s, a second conviction for assaulting a employee of the U.S. Post Office carried the death penalty.

[Consort]

They're dead, Jim.

[arasina]

Some portions of the McCarthy hearings transcripts provided by DPB101, for a certain poster's enlightenment perhaps.

ONE
Senator Symington. Do you believe in the anti-Semitic purges that have recently developed in the countries behind the Iron Curtain? Do you approve of that?

Mr. Auerbach. I don't believe there are anti-Semitic purges.

Senator Symington. You do not believe there are anti- Semitic purges?

Mr. Auerbach. No.

Senator Symington. You think that is just propaganda on the part of the capitalistic press?

Mr. Auerbach. I think that it is misinformation about the situation, combined with propaganda, which is quite appropriate to the cold war from the viewpoint of those who would like to wage that war.

Senator Symington. So if I follow you, you believe that these reports about anti-Semitism in the Soviet Union and its satellites are incorrect. Is that right?

Mr. Auerbach. I believe they are absolutely incorrect . . .

TWO
Mr. Cohn. Have you served on the enlarged National Committee of the Communist party of the United States?

Mr. Reiss. I refuse to answer on the grounds previously stated. . .

Mr. Cohn. Yes. Now, let me ask you this, Mr. Reiss: In your opinion, who was responsible--who was the aggressor in the Korean War?

Mr. Reiss. I refuse to answer on the grounds previously stated. . .

Mr. Cohn. Do you believe in our form of government? Do you believe in a capitalistic democracy?

Mr. Reiss. I refuse to answer on the basis of the First and Fifth Amendments.

[PPHSFL]

"Intense" competitors? At the time of the trial, the Soviets were actively supporting the North Koreans with material and pilots against us. They were developing nuclear weapons with the threat that they would use them against us in order to destroy the United States. I would say that that is a little more than "intense" competition.
As far as the Rosenbergs, they were guilty and got exactly what they deserved for being traitors. The only thing that I have a problem with is that we haven't executed more since. People like the Walkers, Ames, and that FBI guy should have also been executed.

[Emma]

and the files said that 'liberal's' wife wasn't a part of the game.

[gwmoore]

The Rosenberg's were guilty as hell. If David Greenglass hadn't been acting as the conduit as well, the Soviets wouldn't have been able to build a "chinese copy" of the Fat Man design for years after '49. Their being Jewish had, IMHO little or nothing to do with espionage. Religion has NOTHING to do with their crimes. When the Venona documents were made public, and the archives of the Soviet Union were made public, which is one hell of a lot more openness than the US Government has shown about the whole deal, one sees plainly that they did, indeed act as couriers in the spy biz.

Sure, there are a lot of other actors in this game who are still breathing air who shouldn't be, but at least two aren't.

FYI, I'm 56, not over 65 like some earlier posters have stated was the cutoff age for knowing about this BS, and still know the names, and darn well know traitors when I hear about them. Having somewhat personal experience with the stuff they gave away, and holding the appropriate clearances to gain said experience, the thought of what they did sickens me to the core. I feel proud to having been investigated and deemed worthy of being able to work with such sensitive material, and hold no shame at having done so.

I, of course, like others my age, grew up in the shadow of the "duck and cover" era, and thought that Armageddon was only seconds away. Frankly, I dispise Communism, Communists, Leftists, and all the other scum who would disclose vital information to hostile or any other powers, for that matter, just for what they feel was "right". I realize that my tagline is from a Russian manual on the Nagant Revolver, but I simply happen to think that the line is both funny, and pertinent, regardless of who wrote it.

There are those who despise nuclear technology, and nuclear weapons, but those who had the foresight and genius to build the first one are extremely special. They were venturing into an extremely strange land, where the rules were not at all clear, and some paid the extreme penalty for the exploration. Their work, and the work of the Physicists Engineers, and Technicians who followed, maintained a peace for 50+ years which, if we had not followed the nuclear path, would surely have gone well toward destroying the world as we know it. IMHO, I consider a nuke/thermonuke like any other weapon, neither good nor bad, but only a tool, the good or evil of which is defined by the actions of those who employ it.

I only wish Greenglass and Fuchs had been turned into a couple of 1/4 watt resistors plugged into 2,300VAC like the Rosenbergs. I feel no sympathy, nor emotion, and whatever Greenglass says, or doesn't say, doesn't change the fact that he, and the others with him, were traitors to our great Republic, and like all traitors, should have been sentenced to death, the same as the Rosenbergs. Again, I emphasise that religion has 0.000 to do with the penalties or any explanations. To bring religion up is nothing but a smoke and mirror game. They could have been Protestant, Catholic, Buddhist, Moslem, Agnostic, or Atheist for that matter (If I have left any religions/non regilions out, please include them here, as it was not intentional on my part) A traitor is a traitor and should be treated as such. The penalty for treason is death, and should still be enforced as such.

Keep the Faith for Freedom

Greg

[HISSKGB]

Their cult persists.

[Emma]

Brock admits was willing to lie then for his rightist convictions maybe he's perfectly capable of lying today for his leftist beliefs. So it is with Greenglass.

that doesn't make any sense. if the admission of a lie is a lie, then he didn't lie previously, which makes him not a liar, which makes the admission of a lie the truth, which means he did lie previously, and so on on. that logic is inconclusive -- its infinitely circular.

[Emma]

i thought the technical information they passed on was crude drawings by a non-scientist.

[gwmoore]

The "crude drawings" were of technology which the Soviets may not have thought of and were the crucial item in making that particular weapon design function. Even though the "secrets" are now pretty much publicly known, I still don't like discussing exactly what they were, kind of a reflex habit from myriad numbing security briefings ;-) The briefings never quite leave your thoughts LOL...
Greg