Think back to Tomorrow

Rebirth of a Realist
I am an old war horse and I recently told a group of students re-organizing an SDS campus group to look back, but do not let old warhorses lead them. We need new ideas and it is your
world. Run with it.
Having said that, I must add the old cliche about those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.
In a letter to my cousin (Taken from my book, THE GENES OF GREGORIA) I wrote...
. "When the economy built on a mountain of worthless paper collapsed in 1929, and the ensuing poverty crushed the middle class in America, even the upper middle class, lost their arrogance and gave way to despair. Without the “Rich and Famous” being paraded about to sell the American dream, propagandists turned from a positive to a very negative approach. Instead of trumpeting the success of America they fanned the flames of hatred, and the results were the labor goons attacking strikers who may have been their own neighbors but were painted red by the press.
Undisguised terrorism was let loose in the land. Hired thugs who broke up Union Meetings were only following the lead of the press and the United States Congress. In 1938 a special investigative committee was formed in the House of Representatives to “investigate un-American activities.” The chairman of the committee was Martin Dies. The Congressman from Texas hired a chief investigator named Edward F. Sullivan. That appointment alone told most thinking Americans exactly what the Committee was going to be. Mister Sullivan had already been arrested nine times on charges that included larceny, drunkenness sodomy and impersonating an F.B.I. officer. This was the man that was going to investigate American citizens and determine if their actions were un-American.
I can remember relating this part of our history to a group of students and it became obvious to me during the question period that they had difficulty believing it. I had to document it for them. Sasha, I am sure that when Soviet citizens first learned the truth of Stalin’s purges they had the same problem. We are all products of the media unless we are endowed with the intellectual fortitude to resist. The truth is that chief investigator Sullivan brought in “expert “ witnesses to testify against anyone that the committee wanted to persecute. The so-called experts were Alvin Halpern, who was sent to prison for larceny even before he finished his testimony; Peter J. Innes, a professional Labor spy who was sent to prison for the attempted rape of a small child. There was William C. McCuiston, an “Enforcer” hired to break strikes. He was himself murdered after he was indicted for murder by the court.William T. Gerneay, who was soon exposed as another management agent sent in to infiltrate and spy on the unions; Edwin Perry Banta, an admitted member of a pro-nazi organization who died in jail while serving a sentence for a felony crime; John Koos, a man who sent a telegram to Hitler congratulating him for his “history making efforts in the area of human rights”(Koos was also a member of the infamous Hetman organization, a fascist Ukrainian group); Richard Krebs who came to the United States after serving in the German Gestapo and had also served thirty nine months in San Quenton Prison. Perhaps the most distinguished witness of this band of blackguards was Walter Steel. He was the editor of the fanatical, right wing, pro-Father Coughlin publication. “The National Republic.”
Now, Sasha, I must give you the punch line to this bizarre affair in American History. Congressman Thomas, a member of the Committee, and a very outspoken member, later became the chairman of the committee. He spewed his anti-Communist venom everywhere, but he was himself convicted of defrauding the U.S. government and sent to prison.
Young Americans like myself had to decide who were the real Americans and who was the UN-Americans. I knew that my parents were the real Americans. They were fighting for equality and justice for all people, so the enemy had to be the Government of the United States. After all that bunch of felons and murderers represented the U.S. Government. It was all a shattering experience for a teen-aged patriot who was living in a conservative town and wanted more than anything to belong, as most teenagers do. I found myself becoming more withdrawn with each passing day and each damning headline that attempted to drive a wedge between my country and my family."
Yes, this did really happen and it is happening again today. It is more sophisticated and
new words are added like "terrorist" and ugh "Liberal" but the objective is the same.
Hurry SDS and get your new message out to the streets. The empire is crumbling and you must pick up the pieces.