Hamlin Moments

In Curt Gentry's spellbinding biography of J.E. Hoover, the name of Senator McCarthy appears numerous times. One in particular stands out: "McCarthy knew next to nothing about communism, foreign or domestic. Earlier, seeking an issue for his 1952 reelection campaign, the senator had consulted several advisers: one had suggested increased pensions for the elderly, another championed the St. Lawrence Seaway; while the third, Father Edmund Walsh, a Georgetown Univiersity dean, had recommended the issue McCarthy finally picked, Communist infiltration of the government."    p 378, J.Edgar Hoover, The Man and The Secrets Hence the name McCarthyism entered the colloquial lexicon for those of a certain age who studied history. Now a new McCarthyism has emerged and the "National Association of Scholars" is tracking university professors who dare speak out against the politically safe topics. A database has been compiled of such cases. Read about that here and se

Censorship is openly practiced in many countries. Citizens of these countries have acquiesced for the most part in exchange for other capitalistic-like freedoms. Recently on a FB discussion about the value of understanding history, I simply wrote the following expression in a FB comment:    "Arbeit Macht Frei" No sooner had I hit the "enter" key and a message was sent saying that my account was now in violation of the FB Hate Crimes Standards and if repeated I would be banished. Obviously the brilliant technicians at FB did not bother to parse the entire conversation and had read the line completely out of context.   Had I entered this url -   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbeit_macht_frei  - the censors may have let it pass. Who knows?  Then I remembered that Chan Zuckerberg with her FB millions is underwriting a measure on the 2020 ballot in California which will be detrimental to many businesses.  Her foundation underwrote both versions. The first wasn

These pictures show outdoor theatre and movie venues in Greece.  Looks very charming, except when it rains...   https://apnews.com/27c27cacad564ff07f25df6421baded5 Love this one of the cat on the projector... https://apnews.com/27c27cacad564ff07f25df6421baded5 In the US, the car predominates, so outdoor movies are what we used to call "Drive-In Movies"... https://www.wideopencountry.com/30-best-drive-in-movie-theaters-in-the-country/

https://commonsenseevaluation.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/History.png Cervantes , for example, wrote a novel about Christian slaves and included a chapter in Don Quixote  about freeing slaves......    " Vandalized but not removed was a statue of Miguel de Cervantes, a Spanish writer who was himself a slave for five years.  Don Quixote and Sancho Panza — and for what?” asked a frustrated Howard, watching the graffiti removal from John F. Kennedy Drive. “It’s very sad. It makes me feel it’s totally out of hand and it has nothing to do with civil rights.”.... https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2020/06/20/mayor-breed-destruction-statues-golden-gate-park-vandalism/ Ulysses S. Grant , who won the civil war for Lincoln, was from Missouri, which was entered into the US as a "slave" state (Missouri Compromise). Evidently Grant owned one slave.  "Grant personally owned one slave, William Jones, given to him in 1857 by his father-in-law and  manumitted  by

Reading Manchester (Death of a President, 1967) has inspired me to know more about this national tragedy. The history.com link is illuminating as well as its internal links.  See below: https://www.history.com/news/ what-the-jfk-assassination- files-say-declassified- release-oswald Conclusion:  JFK assassination could have been stopped.   Same implication from the book on JE Hoover (Gentry, 1992) because the Dallas FBI office knew of Oswald and his anger. Manchester's amazing book (1967) raises questions IMHO.  Why was LHO unprotected at Dallas PD? Was LHO paid? Why was Ruth Paine so obsessed with Marina Oswald?  LHO motive? All of Manchester's interviews and notes have not yet been released.  Book is a treasure trove of history, culture and politics. More to come on this topic, but maybe not in our lifetime.

Take a moment to think about history and literature. Move away from the sound bite to the visceral.