#the number of typos i have corrected on that last tag.... i should be given an award

[morrithal]

cutwater is so fucking crazy how do just two of them fuck me up so bad

[eclairbrun]

Generally positive reception to that post that was basically If you want people to keep stocking the books you want, and to make preservable copies of the shows you want to preserve, you should actually buy them so companies have an incentive to keep giving you those things.

Given that the negative responses I got were about streaming, I’m guessing this has gone over better with the book crowd than with the streaming crowd. Although tbh, part of that might be that there’s no specific books people are rallying around so much as the general situation of debut and midlist authors facing lost opportunities, while there are specific shows with fanbases affected by the HBO thing and I tagged that post with the show I saw the largest number of people upset about. Still, the fact that all the replies with specific comments are about shows and not books makes me a little sad, seeing as this is an author’s blog.

Anyway, to clarify my stance on the matter a little more, since the last post was pretty brief on the issue:

Corporations are greed-driven entities with straight up legal obligations to be profitable. If you put your foot down and don’t let them profit from you via exploitative practices, then they can’t exploit you. If you make the practices that give you more control unprofitable, then congrats. You have just given them easy justification to stop wasting money on the thing that protects you from exploitation. Thus, only paying media companies for forms of media that give you less control is begging the company to take advantage of you, and teaching them that they can continue to strip you of more and more power for additional convenience.

If there is media that is truly valuable to you and you want to ensure you can access it, then to the best of your ability, you should push for access to the method that lets you preserve it. If you don’t, then you are either blindly trusting corporations (which is an oddly corporatism-friendly attitude on a site that claims to hate capitalism) or you don’t actually consider the media to be worthwhile.

While I didn’t get any pushback on the book front, I’mma mention that this also applies to many ebooks or other forms of digital media stored in archives owned by the company that sold you the show or comic or whatever. TOS usually mention somewhere in the fine print that you are effectively renting that material. It can often be altered or even revoked after you pay for and download it. There are forms of digital media that are less susceptible to this, but you wanna make sure your device itself doesn’t have some feature built in to detect if you are circumventing some corporation’s control, lest they ban your account or brick your device. Amazon has been sued for removing books off of people’s Kindle apps that they paid for. Sony deleted purchased movies from people’s libraries in Europe last month. You do not own much of the digital content you “buy.” I have personally witnessed books that I paid for getting edited after I downloaded them. The edits were to correct typos, but the fact that this feature exists means one of the books I paid for could be covertly censored after my purchase without outright removal from my device. TV shows and movies are vulnerable to this same post-release editing.

Physical media is the most secure means of ensuring that you will retain access to the story you love, in the form in which you fell in love with it. Continuing to support physical is the BEST way to combat corporate abuse. A physical book might not be as resistant to a house fire as something up in the cloud is, but everyone encounters corporate greed on the regular and can worsen it through continued enabling. Most people will never be in a fire.

Also, like, I just don’t buy the arguments about cost/quantity with streaming. If you’re so poor that you legitimately can’t afford a DVD or two a year, this all applies to you in the same way that reminders to use the stairs instead of an elevator apply to someone in a wheelchair. (Which, y’know, shame on me for assuming that went without saying on tumblr.) Otherwise, the average person spends 1/3 on streaming what it costs for cable, and people were able to buy DVDs and VHS tapes and whatnot back in the days of cable over streaming. This didn’t stop because of cost issues. It stopped because people no longer felt the need to buy physical media once streaming gave them on-demand access that cable lacked. It is entirely possible to have ‘rental’ access to a large library of shows and also secure personally-preservable copies of shows that are of particular value to you. This is a thing that people used to do when they wanted to have access to a particular show or movie back before streaming tricked them into thinking the access would always be one login away. And it should come as a shock to no one that shows can disappear off of streaming services when that’s been a thing for years. 

And please, please, do not tell me, a book person, that DVDs are too space-consuming to be a viable option. You can get cases that hold 25 of those things in the same amount of space that a single hardcover book takes up.

[lesbiansforboromir]

Impossible LotR Quiz Answer sheet with explanations!

As an addendum, since people have been doing the quiz I’ve seen a few mistypes and awkwardnesses that are my own fault so I’ve corrected them. This means some people got a higher score than was shown, know that when I looked over your answers I saw your actually right answers and fully appreciated them! It’s good to not that the ‘fill in the blanks’ questions will not take two words in one space, so I’ve had to get creative with how I apply two named folk like Mardil Voronwe, or people who have numbers like Hurin I.

I would also like to say, to everyone talking about how they’ve never read the Silmarillion, this quiz is very purposefully almost entirely based outside of the Silmarillion. This is Appendices stuff! Indeed there is only 1 question even tangentally related to elves in here, this is by design. 

@magaramach, @brynnmclean and @apojiiislands asked to be tagged in this! Answers under the cut. 

Q2. Who was Dora Baggins in relation to Bilbo Baggins? - Second cousin on his father's side Dora Baggins is a very elderly woman who was the daughter of Bilbo’s father’s brother. She likes writing people a lot of unsolicited advice! THIS WAS WRONG AND SAID FIRST COUSIN FOR SO LONG AND I AM DEEPLY SORRY FOR IT.

Q3. How many pairs of biological twins are mentioned in the whole of Arda's timeline and what races do they belong too? - 2 for men, 1 for elves and 3 for half-elves Fastred and Folcred, Haleth and Haldar (men) Amrod and Amras (elves) Elured and Elurin, Elrond and Elros, Elladan and Elrohir (half-elves) Now, admittedly Elladan and Elrohir are never actually described as twins. However they appear completely identical and have the same birth date, so it is assumed.

Q4. Baldor is who the skeleton scratching at the door used to be. When Aragorn and co pass through the paths of the dead they find a skeleton clawing at a door to the mountain. It is finely dressed and described as mighty and was later essentially confirmed to be Baldor, the eldest son of King Brego of Rohan, also called Baldor the hapless, who foolishly wandered into the paths of the dead on, apparently, a dare. (the answer to this was originally Brego because of a foolish typo from me, many apologies!)

Q5. When was the Ondonóre Nómesseron Minaþurie written? - During Meneldil's reign. “Enquiry into the Place-names of Gondor” was a text written by settled numenoreans about their new kingdom during Meneldil’s reign, who was the first sole King of Gondor after both Anarion (his father) and Isildur had perished.   

Q6. Farmer Maggot's particular friend was Tom Bombadil  It is stated that Farmer Maggot sometimes peacefully passes through the Old Forest to go and meet Tom Bombadil, who very much enjoys his company. However! Those who answered Merry or Pippin still deserve excellent recognition, Farmer Maggot was indeed fond of Pippin and respected Merry greatly.

Q7. What was the office of the Steward originally created to do? - Keep the Tradition of Isildur When Romendacil I went to war in the east, he realised that if he died then the secret of the Tradition of Isildur would die with him. Hence he wrote it down in a sealed scoll and gave it to a trusted confidante, to be given to his heir if he should perish. This tradition was maintained by further kings and those trusted confidantes became the Stewards of Gondor. This, admittedly, is a more suggested progression than explicit, but it’s a Impossible evil quiz so :) Q8. What was the 'Tradition of Isildur'? - Remember where Elendil was buried. Elendil had been secretly entombed in Calenardhon, supposedly the midpoint between Gondor and Arnor. This was a hallowed space for only Kings at first, but in later years when the Stewards came to rule Gondor they also were permitted the secret. Cirion had the remains moved when Calenardhon was gifted to the Eotheod to eventually become a part of the Kingdom of Rohan. 

Q9. At the time of Pelargir's founding, is the world flat or round? - Flat. Pelargir was founded as a ‘Faithful Numenorean’ haven on the river Anduin. Therefore it was built before Numenor’s destruction in the Akallabeth, the reason for which being that Eru turned the world from flat to round. 

Q10. Which of these monarchs were indolent and had no interest in ruling? - King Atanatar I - King Narmacil I - Tar-Vanimelde King Atanatar I ruled during Gondor’s richest generation and seemed to believe that meant he didn’t need to put any work in. Narmacil I, his son, didn’t want to put any work in, but he at least assigned his nephew, Minalcar, as ‘Karma-Kundo’ or regent during his reign. So he at least did something to keep the country going. Tar-Vanimelde had no interest in ruling and allowed her husband to do most of the governence. This backfired when she died and he organised a coup against his son to hold power.

Q11. When looking back on the Ship-Kings of Gondor, King Tarannon Falastur began the invasion of Harad and expanded Gondor's borders, King Earnil-I finally took Umbar but died at sea shortly afterwards, King Ciryandil spent most of his reign trying to defend Umbar and died in it's seige and King Hyarmendacil defended Umbar against seiges for 35 years before making war upon all Harad and claiming Harondor as a province of Gondor, ending the line of the Ship Kings.

Q12. What happened during the reign of King Romendacil II? - I don't know! Nothing? Yes I know this is particularly evil of me but Romendacil II was originally called Minalcar, yes the same Minalcar who became REGENT of Gondor due to Narmacil’s indolent nature. Minalcar indeed did everything else listed as answers to this question, but none of them happened during his reign as king. Indeed, his reign was said to be peaceful and we have no real information on it, so technically saying we don’t know, and suggesting nothing happened, is actually the most correct answer :)

Q13. Who succeeded Tar-Telperien of Numenor? - Her nephew, Minastir Tar-Telperien was a lesbian Queen of Numenor who never married and never wanted too and did an excellent job and I love her. Her nephew built a tower to mope in about how much he wanted to be an elf. They are not the same. Absolutely terrified about what Amazon could do to her. 

Q14. Whilst his brethren, the nazgul, were attacking the Prancing Pony, The Witch-King was waiting in the Barrow Downs and probably had a really nice time. Not much to this! Witch King was chilling with the Barrow Wights. 

Q15. Which of these characters are described as 'beautiful' at least once in the Lord of the Rings? - Galadriel, Denethor, Eowyn, Frodo, Elanor, Celeborn, Boromir Yes, Arwen is never described as beautiful, but Denethor is :)

Q16. We all love Boromir II, select the similarities he and Boromir I did NOT share. - Renowned relationship with the Rohirrim. - Destroyed the Bridge of Osgiliath - Feared by the Witch King - Retook Ithilien. - Had a brother. In case you’re wondering, yes, I love both Boromirs. But this question is a fun highlight of how many similarities Boromir II has with his namesake. These are the only things they didn’t both do. Although! Boromir I’s son was Cirion who allied with the Eotheod and created Rohan in the first place, the Uruk-Hai destroyed the Bridge of Osgiliath in Boromir I’s lifetime, Boromir II was PROBABLY feared by the witch-king we just don’t know, Boromir II held Ithilien and Boromir I had two elder sisters like Denethor II did.

Q17. Hey, did you know that, from Boromir I's war with the Uruk-Hai of the Morgul Vale, Gondor didn't know peace until Sauron's death on the 25th of March, 3019? Hah hah! How gut wrenching is that? About how long do you think it has been since Gondor knew peace then? Hey wait does that mean Boromir I's valiant victory that came at a personal sacrifice was the beginning of Gondor's wars and then Boromir II's valiant sacrifice was the end- oh god... oh fuck - 550 years To everyone who answered the crossed out answer,,, you’re correct in my heart. You get bonus points. Also hey! What the fuck :) 

Q18. Who was Borondir? - The rider sent to find Eorl who made it to him after starving himself for two days but who then rode to the Celebrant with Eorl anyway and died in that battle. Literally couldn’t love this fellow more. Big Hirgon energy. A hero of Gondor for time immemorial. 

Q19. The Ruling Stewards, from first to last (with their numbers typed as so Turin-I Hurin-II etc), were as follows; Mardil ; Eradan ; Herion ; Belegorn ; Hurin-I ; Turin-I ; Hador ; Barahir ; Dior ; Denethor-I ; Boromir-I ; Cirion ; Hallas ; Hurin-II ; Belecthor-I ; Orodreth ; Ecthelion-I ; Egalmoth ; Beren ; Beregond ; Belecthor-II ; Thorondir ; Turin-II ; Turgon ; Ecthelion-II ; Denethor-II ; and for like two seconds ; Faramir ; Alrighty, we had a bit of a fight in my discord about this but eventually I did relent in agreement that Faramir IS... very briefly... legally considered a RULING Steward. Ruling Stewards being Stewards that ruled a Kingless Gondor. But! With Aragorn RIGHT THERE is just seemed very redundant. Still! I’ll allow the pedant to win out, ten minutes is still a Ruling Steward. ALSO! I decided that having an extra box for the ‘voronwe’ part of mardil voronwe was just mean as it set everyone’s answers off kilter, so I removed that. ALSO for all of those calling me a bastard for adding this question, @illegalstargender was the one who requested it! I wasn’t going too! 

Q20. The Stewards, despite ruling through very tumultuous and violent periods, were often known for boring things (because they simply ruled better than the Kings did, I said what I said) But what boring thing was Steward Turin I remembered for? - Being the only monarch of Gondor that married twice This skeezy bastard really did marry a second time during his OLD age just to father a son. I can only imagine what a dreadful cultural and social effect this had on this prude country. It’s so unnecessary! He had daughters, many of them! One of them certainly had a son before he did. He was just being a controlling arse, down with Turin I!!!!

[trashassassin]

Malfunctions (Connor x Reader)

Okay, so, a little backstory on this one. Seeing as this is the first fic I’ve ever actually published and not let rot in google docs, I feel like I owe y’all an explanation. So, I was working on something else, a nice happy, normal fic, when I hit a roadblock. I was tired and nothing was coming to me. So, I decided to take a nap. And during that nap, my brain graced me with this idea in the form of a dream. And if I have to suffer with it, then the rest of you have to also. I’m sorry in advance. I promise not all of my writing will be this depressing. Feel free to correct me if you see any typos because my brain is bad.

Word Count: 2018

Warnings: very sad

It was time for him to admit that something was wrong. This was no longer something that could be written off as a one time glitch that would right itself and then never come up again.

At first, it was little, insignificant things. You’d asked him to pick something up for you from the store on his way home, a small item, like a snack or a tube of toothpaste, and he’d forgotten. It was a distinctly human thing to do, something he’d figured was a normal part of the progression of deviancy.

Humans forgot things all the time, after all.

Granted, he’d never heard of such a thing happening before, but it made sense at the time.

But this theory began to fall apart as he thought about it further. Up until that point, he’d kept your birthday, your friends’ birthdays, all 261 of your online passwords, and at least a thousand addresses of nearby businesses committed to memory.

He’d never forgotten anything, especially not something as simple as what you wanted from the store.

And yet, as he stood on the balcony of your shared home, he’d completely forgotten why he’d come out there in the first place. It certainly wasn’t to contemplate why his mind was falling apart.

You had asked for something. But what was it?

It was fruitless to try and remember. Instead, he simply sighed and pulled a folded up piece of paper from his pocket upon which he’d written your instructions once he was safely out of your line of sight.

You’d asked him to retrieve the book you’d left on the patio table before it began to rain. Of course! How could he have forgotten something like that? You’d told him…

… not long ago, he was sure.

He grabbed the book from the table and brought it inside just as a mass of dark clouds was starting to roll up in the distance.

You were facing away from him when he made it back to the living room, your attention focused whatever was on the television in front of you. It was a celebrity gossip show, he found as he examined it closer, a genre you were never really fond of.

That much he could remember, at least.

Without a word, he set the book on the coffee table and sat down beside you.

You didn’t look away from the television. You couldn’t. You knew that if you opened your mouth to address what was on your mind, you would break down.

You weren’t even paying attention to what was on the screen. All you had wanted was something, anything, to slow the tide of your racing thoughts so you had a chance, however brief, of straightening them out.

Your hands clenched into fists, gripping tightly to the fabric of your pants as you considered what you were going to say.

“So,” you said, punctuated with a sharp sigh. “You gonna tell me what’s going on with you or are you gonna keep pretending like nothing’s wrong?”

He stared down at your hands, the light on his temple turning from blue to yellow.

“I told you,” he said. “Just a simple malfunction, nothing more. It happens. It’s nothing to worry about.”

“It’s happening every day now.” Your eyes were so focused on the television that it became the only thing you could see as your surroundings whited out around you. “How long should it have taken to retrieve that book? Certainly not fifteen minutes!”

“Are you angry with me?”

You shook your head and closed your eyes in a vain attempt to dam the flow of tears that began to rise to their surface.

“No, Connor, I’m not angry with you,” you said. “I’m scared. I’m so scared.”

Your battle against the tears was futile. You’d been holding them back for days now and they made the executive decision to spill onto your cheeks all at once.

Connor reached out and placed a hand on your shoulder, which was finally enough to draw your mind back to the present and your attention back onto him.

“I guess there’s no point in denying it any longer,” he said. “For both of our sakes. I’ve been having problems with my memory.”

“I thought so.” You looked away again. “Look, I don’t want this to come off the wrong way, but maybe it’s time I took you in to a repair shop, just to see if they can’t figure out what’s wrong. It’ll be like me going to the doctor. Nothing to be ashamed of, right?”

He nodded.

“Perhaps you’re right,” he said.

Finally, you’d managed to talk some sense into him. You were well aware of the reason he was so reluctant to ask for help. From the very beginning, he’d always assured you that he was entirely self-sufficient. Admitting that he had a problem he was unable to solve by himself made him feel like a failure.

It made him feel like he was just a machine, and a broken one at that.

To you, however, he was simply sick. Of course, he was unable to get sick in the traditional way that a human could, but that hardly meant that he was immune from the occasional off day that came along with being alive.

But somehow, this didn’t feel like one of his occasional off days.

You tried to push this thought out of your mind as the two of you got into the car and you made your way toward the nearest CyberLife repair shop.

They had become quite commonplace since androids had won the battle for equal rights quite some time ago. As you had explained to Connor many times, they had become like hospitals for androids instead of somewhere to sealed off and analyzed.

Still, you could tell that he was nervous as you exited the car, so you took hold of his hand before making your way toward the sliding entrance doors.

You approached one of the attendants seated behind the reception desk, a kind-looking female android in a white uniform and explained the situation to her. Once she’d heard what you had to say, she directed you toward the waiting area.

You and Connor stayed there for what felt like an eternity but, in reality, was likely a time period closer to twenty minutes.

You were then called back by another woman, a human woman, dressed in a similar uniform with a name tag that read “Morgan”.

She greeted you, a gesture that fell on deaf ears as you gave a canned response, then lead you back to a small room containing a number of gadgets you couldn’t even begin to guess the purpose of.

Although you didn’t understand what was happening, you kept a close eye on every step of the process.

You watched as Morgan put Connor through a series of tests, all of which she assured you were “standard” and “just in case”, and you held his hand through as many as you were able to.

Her face remained stoic throughout the entire process and that made you nervous.

“Well?” you finally asked.

Your heart was racing and your grip on Connor’s hand tightened.

“It was as I suspected,” she said. “His memory unit is starting to wear out. But, other than that, everything appears to be in good working order.”

“So, you can replace it, right?”

She sat down across from you and looked you directly in the eye, a solemn expression on her face.

“Normally, we would be able to,” she said. “But, he’s an older model, so the parts we need are no longer in circulation.”

Your entire body froze as you fully absorbed what she’d said. That was one of the last things you’d wanted to hear.

“So, there’s nothing you can do?” you asked. “Nothing at all?”

“I’m afraid the damage has already been done,” she said. “Even if we were able to repair it, it would be highly likely to malfunction again, if not break altogether.”

You pressed your hand over your mouth, trying your best to hold it together in front of her.

“I’m very sorry,” she said. “I can tell that he is very important to you and I wish I could do more to help.”

“You did all you could,” you said.

Your voice was flat and shaky, entirely devoid of its usual tone.

Without another word, you stood and exited the room, keeping Connor’s hand tightly in yours as you made your way back out to the parking lot.

Neither one of you said anything on the drive back home. You couldn’t speak for him, but you were trying to keep your head clear so that you could concentrate. The last thing you needed was to get into a car accident after the horrible news you’d received.

“Are you alright?” he asked as the two of you stepped inside the house.

Caring about your well-being above his own. How very much like him.

“I’ll be fine,” you said. “You wait here. There’s something I have to do upstairs.”

You turned and ascended the staircase as quickly as your legs would allow. They felt as though they were made of lead, propelling your body forward through quicksand.

You had resolved that, perhaps, if you just had a minute to think, then you would be able to figure out something, anything that would make a difference.

But as soon as you reached your bedroom, your knees gave out and you collapsed onto the floor, the tears you’d been holding in for so long flowing freely now that you no longer felt the pressure of putting on a brave face.

The reality was, there was nothing you or anyone else could do now and, deep down inside, a part of you had known that all along.

Your body was racked with heaving sobs and you hugged your knees to your chest, feeling entirely hopeless all the while.

If his memory had given out, then what was next? How long would it be until he shut down entirely?

You stood up and shook your head, brushing your tears away with the backs of your hands. You wouldn’t allow yourself to wallow alone any longer. If there was ever a time when he needed you, it was now.

You took a deep breath to compose yourself, then headed back down the stairs, only to find him seated at the dining room table, scribbling something furiously with a pen.

You came up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“What are you doing?” you asked.

He didn’t say anything. Instead, he simple pushed whatever he had been writing on in your direction.

It was a square sheet of paper, medium sized, and on it was written your full name, your birthdate, a list of your favorite foods, and a few of the things you liked to do in your spare time. You turned it over and, on the other side, was a picture of you.

You remembered when it was taken. It was your first anniversary and it was quite cold that day, evidenced by the fact that your cheeks and your nose were tinged pink. The two of you had just been to dinner at your favorite restaurant when he pulled out a camera and pointed it at you as you were walking back to the car.

He said that he never wanted to forget how you looked in that moment. And so, he took your picture in spite of your protests that you were tired and cold, and it likely wouldn’t come out that great.

“I never want to forget you,” he said. “But even if I do, you know I’ll always love you, right?”

You looked up at him, your eyes brimming with tears all over again.

“Oh, Connor.” You wrapped your arms around him, pulling him in as tight as you could possibly managed. “Of course I know that. No matter what happens to you, I’ll never let myself lose sight of that.”

“You promise?” he asked.

You nodded.

“I promise.”

[thewebofslime]

This site uses cookies to improve your experience and to provide services and advertising. By continuing to browse, you agree to the use of cookies described in our Cookies Policy. You may change your settings at any time but this may impact on the functionality of the site. To learn more see our Cookies Policy. OK Business ETC The42 The Daily Edge Search siteSearch Dublin: 2 °C Sunday 10 March, 2019 Homepage Irish Politics International Voices Family Culture Business Brexit My Feed RSS TagsBROADBAND COMMUNICATIONS COMMUNICATIONS MINISTER DAVID MCCOURT DAVID MCCOURT – HEAD OF THE GRANAHAN MCCOURT DENIS NAUGHTEN GONE LEO CULLEN NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN See other tags Denis Naughten has resigned as Communications Minister He made the announcement in the Dáil this afternoon. Oct 11th 2018, 3:09 PM 62,053 Views 115 Comments Share968 Tweet Email2 Image: Leah Farrell EMBATTLED COMMUNICATIONS MINISTER Denis Naughten has announced he is to resign his position. He made the announcement in the Dáil this afternoon. Speaking in the Dáil this afternoon, Naughten said he had a meeting with the Taoiseach last night, in which Leo Varadkar asked him to reflect on his position. “The Taoiseach does not have confidence in me,” he said. Naughten said he was left in a difficult position, where the opposition had not called for him to step aside, nor had the Taoiseach, but added that he had to reflect himself. Do I wait for that decision myself, to resign, or do I wait for someone else to make that decision for me? He said the outcome “is more about opinion polls than telephone polls. It’s more about optics than fibre optics”. Naughten has been in the spotlight following revelations about a dinner he had with the head of the only group bidding for the National Broadband Plan contract. Naughten admitted to attending a dinner with David McCourt – head of the Granahan McCourt consortium – in New York in July, while yesterday it emerged that the minister facilitated a lunch in the Dáil for McCourt’s daughter in April. He told the Dáil today that he had offered to pass over the NBP process to his junior minister, or to another line Cabinet minister, but this offer was refused by the Taoiseach. Source: TheJournal.ie/YouTube Speaking to TheJournal.ie today about the matter, Varadkar revealed that while he was still seeking clarity on protocols that prevent the minister from influencing the procurement process, he was nonetheless happy with the explanation Naughten gave him last night. He said: “I don’t have all the information yet. I’m certainly satisfied with what he said to me last night at the meeting. “I just need to look at the communications protocol for myself and need to hear from him if he has any further information to share with us.” After his speech the minister left the chamber. Source: TheJournal.ie/YouTube Speaking after his resignation today, his counterpart in Fianna Fáil, Timmy Dooley, said he had “great sympathy” for Naughten today, and for his family and constituency. A number of TDs have called for the Taoiseach to come before the Dáil this afternoon. On a side note, the Department of Communications website is down. Short URL Tweet this Share on Facebook Email this article About the author: Christina Finn @christinafinn8 christinafinn@thejournal.ie See more articles by Christina Finn Contribute to this story: Leave a Comment Send a Correction Read next: 'An unprecedented number': 1,700 buildings in Dublin are awaiting protected status 661 Views Introducing our new podcast: The Explainer 2,076 Views One Irish person among 157 dead after Ethiopian Airlines plane crashes en route to Kenya 81,660 Views COMMENTS (115) This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy here before taking part. WRITE A COMMENT dB O'Neill 6y Oct 11th 2018, 3:10 PM Good. 660 Ger Murphy 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:13 PM @dB O’Neill: I think he has no option given poor judgement. 300 Dáithí O Raghailaigh 6m Oct 11th 2018, 3:27 PM @dB O’Neill: Varadkar throwing anyone in his way under the Bus. Power is a Drug..? 248 SEE 13 MORE REPLIES ▾ Tony Stack 6y Oct 11th 2018, 3:14 PM Wow a resignation , this is not normal for Ireland 573 Midland Celt 5y Oct 11th 2018, 6:36 PM @Tony Stack: He was effectively sack and in disgrace. 17 James O'Brien 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:11 PM More to hide now running away. 318 prop joe 3y Oct 11th 2018, 8:06 PM @James O’Brien: so is the contract still valid? No real change unless there are a few bids. One bidder for a multi-million euro contract. 7 dB O'Neill 6y Oct 11th 2018, 3:11 PM Good call, 186 Desmond Wisley 6y Oct 11th 2018, 3:12 PM There goes my high sped broadband 186 Niall Donnelly 6y Oct 11th 2018, 3:14 PM @Desmond Wisley: ask O’Leary or O’Brian. They’ll help ya out!! 114 Niall Donnelly 6y Oct 11th 2018, 3:16 PM Lowry & O’Brien. Ha Typos 115 SEE 3 MORE REPLIES ▾ Kenneth Carroll 5y Oct 11th 2018, 3:12 PM More Brown envelopes??? 197 Go way ba willu 1y Oct 11th 2018, 4:36 PM @Kenneth Carroll: It’s over Leo… 43 Sean Murphy 4y Oct 11th 2018, 3:12 PM Do TDs/ministers still get a pension if they resign early? 179 Dave. 2y Oct 11th 2018, 3:14 PM @Sean Murphy: Standard issue. You could burn down the Dail and you’d still get a pension. Literally no accountability. 410 Roger McGowan 1y Oct 11th 2018, 3:23 PM @Dave.: That pension goes up every time the Dail gives them selves a pay rise too 171 SEE 2 MORE REPLIES ▾ Paddy Murray 7y Oct 11th 2018, 3:27 PM Funny when the communications minister has to resign over his lack of communications with his boss with regard to his communications with a potential supplier . I hope I am communicating this properly 186 Dave Doyle 5y Oct 11th 2018, 3:23 PM Dennis will look after him. Just ask Brian Cowen. 182 Wayne Scales 7y Oct 11th 2018, 3:20 PM It wouldn’t be a surprise if more was to come out.Hopefully Minister Murphy follows suit. 171 Mr E Oct 11th 2018, 3:45 PM @Wayne Scales: and Leo needs to reflect on all these scandals while he has being Taoisock 88 Kenneth Hayden 4y Oct 11th 2018, 3:11 PM Bye bye. 167 iComment Oct 11th 2018, 3:24 PM The civil servants who were at this dinner in New York where the minister was present should also resign….The Moriarty tribunal spent 14 years investigating the last big communications contact the state gave out….They strictly advised how ministers and civil servants should behave in the future… 193 Gary Kearney 4y Oct 11th 2018, 3:45 PM @iComment: Finally somebody said what everybody misses. It is like an episode of Yes Minister. Same thing happened to Shane Ross, of all people his department screwed him over on Bus Connects 56 Kj bar 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:11 PM It never ends….. 149 Johnny Mason 1y Oct 11th 2018, 3:13 PM The calm before the storm ? 119 Trevor Hayden 1y Oct 11th 2018, 3:19 PM Let’s see, before revelations come out about millions in bribes. 116 Dermot Lane 7y Oct 11th 2018, 3:44 PM @Trevor Hayden: there is only one player in the arena for this contract, why would they pay him bribes? 29 Trevor Hayden 1y Oct 11th 2018, 3:55 PM @Dermot Lane: To ensure the others are put off. Siemens and water metering, we’ve seen this all before. 88 SEE 1 MORE REPLY ▾ Shane O Malley 6y Oct 11th 2018, 3:21 PM Yesterday Leo backed his man in parliament , last night F/G mouth organs were on RTE radio and TV3 telling us what an honourable he was, at the same time Leo was telling the minister he had no confidence in him 136 Sean Conway 4y Oct 11th 2018, 4:00 PM @Shane O Malley: Think leo wants an election. i hope it backfires on him and FG/FF. 60 Séan Ó Nuanáin 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:13 PM Buíochas le Dia. Is féidir linn rud éigin maith a dhéanamh don timpeallacht anois 74 Stephen Boland 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:15 PM @Séan Ó Nuanáin: yep 29 sb 6m Oct 11th 2018, 3:28 PM @Séan Ó Nuanáin: da bleedin spanish? 16 SEE 2 MORE REPLIES ▾ Brian Lonergan 5y Oct 11th 2018, 3:21 PM Take a few more of them with you! 92 Squiddley Diddley 2y Oct 11th 2018, 3:14 PM Fianna Fáil Lite 70 Mark 4y Oct 11th 2018, 3:13 PM That stank to high heavens 121 James Keogh 2y Oct 11th 2018, 3:30 PM It is unfortunate that it has come to this but, it is what it is. It would appear that the Minister ran away with himself and his self-assumed status. It was not an honourable resignation it was an escape route chosen to avoid serious questions and he leaves a Bigger Question, Who is going to carry the Churn now and explain his errors and mis-judgement. 64 Joseph Dempsey 5y Oct 11th 2018, 3:30 PM Leo should be embarrassed but of course won’t be, not a few hours after offering fullsome 100% support of his Minister, this happens. No doubt Leo’s communications unit will be in over drive trying to spin the unspinable, just hope Michael Martin will develop enough balls and call an election, enough of this lecerious government 109 jim dee 6m Oct 11th 2018, 3:24 PM varadkar ,coveney the whole lot of them had complete confidence in him one hour ago, what a shower of absolute shysters 143 @mdmak33 4y Oct 11th 2018, 3:43 PM About time,and the contract must be put on hold,DOB involvement puts a cloud over the whole process,he is being investigated by CAB and the ODCE for god sake for criminal activity. 82 mursim 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:32 PM On the bright side. He’s independent – he needs to withdraw support from the government. We need an election – particularly after this abortion of a budget. 67 Patrick James Walsh 4y Oct 11th 2018, 3:21 PM Micheal Martin was devastating on this at leaders questions in the Dail yesterday. Can`t believe that these ministers have handlers, special advisers, and media and PR people employed as well as the full armory of the dept and the civil service at their beck and call, and they still manage to do idiotic things like accept offers of dinner etc, which are clearly designed to gain access to the Minister who has the gift of deciding the bid in question. 98 James O'Brien 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:26 PM Storm Denis 41 Jc Nulty 5y Oct 11th 2018, 3:59 PM He was told last night when he met the taoiseach that he either resigns or he would be sacks, not one senior goverment minster was in the house when he resigned he was left out to dry by theses blue shirts get them out and call a election 51 Sean Conway 4y Oct 11th 2018, 3:41 PM And FF don’t see anything wrong with naughton. 48 Martin Meyler 5y Oct 11th 2018, 3:25 PM Well. That’s a unexpected but welcome development. 37 Charliegrl80 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:45 PM The newest government scandal and properly lots more of them to come – shame we still have politicians in the Dail willing to stay or support these scandals. And this is not about €37 this is about what and who is involved. 39 P Quinn 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:38 PM Varadkar knee that this would become a potential cause for an election and therefore asked the minister to go. Varadkar knows FG will suffer at the polls 37 Charliegrl80 3y Oct 11th 2018, 3:48 PM @P Quinn: it’s still an election issue even though naughten resigned, as the people involved are still holding the contract. 29 Tom's 1y Oct 11th 2018, 3:35 PM Tell us what his exit package will be. 30 Mark Plunkett 6m Oct 11th 2018, 3:48 PM Well well well amazing what a few hours can do,Leo the liar quoted yesterday he had no problem supporting him,what a joke,ah well nice pension,off to the sun without a care in the world.the usual run of the mill in the dail. 45 Maurice Dodd 6y Oct 11th 2018, 9:48 PM @Mark Plunkett: lieo 2 Barry O Toole 1y Oct 11th 2018, 3:18 PM Leo wont allow any dung stick to his socks 77 PJ Berry 4y Oct 11th 2018, 4:00 PM Absolutely no loss 28 WoodlandBard 2y Oct 11th 2018, 3:15 PM What’s wrong with having dinner? That aside, yes I feel it needs someone else in that job. It was going nowhere. 26 Do the Bort man 2y Oct 11th 2018, 3:18 PM @WoodlandBard: My thoughts exactly, I guess there may be much more to this story that would have leaked of he hadn’t resigned. 79 WoodlandBard 2y Oct 11th 2018, 3:18 PM …. but who else is there to get the rural broadband out? 13 SEE 3 MORE REPLIES ▾ Tadhg Kelleher 7y Oct 11th 2018, 3:23 PM The nbp comes to fruition the same time mobile broadband providers claim 97% coverage. Now some lucky divil is going to get half a billion for the last 3%. There was never an nbp…. 28 John McCann 6m Oct 11th 2018, 4:01 PM Leo the Liar. Denis the Crook and the other Denis being investigated by CAB. It’s just like going back 20 years. FG putting 2 fingers up to the voters and Mehole Martin as spineless as ever. They’re all a shower of crooks. Would almost vote for the Shinners, only joking! But we now need an election to clear out the bad apples. 46 Jc Nulty 5y Oct 11th 2018, 4:08 PM Come on fianna fail lets see what you will do now or will you still sit on the fence and do what you always do and abstain thats why the people put you in to do nothing you will get your answer when there is a election. 33 Paddy Murray 7y Oct 11th 2018, 3:27 PM Funny when the communications minister has to resign over his lack of communications with his boss with regard to his communications with a potential supplier . I hope I am communicating this properly 23 BK 2y Oct 11th 2018, 4:28 PM On the same day she has been “vindicated” by Charleton Tribunal here comes Frances Fitzgerald back in cabinet to save the day .. ….what will FF do then ? 18 Yourmam McCarthy 1y Oct 11th 2018, 4:17 PM You wouldnt see Simon Harris resign. You would want a crowbar to get rid pf him. 31 Dave Moran 7y Oct 11th 2018, 4:43 PM Ill bet there is a lot more to this….? 18 Nigel o'Neill 2y Oct 11th 2018, 4:35 PM Just look at all the headline articles on here today!! They make for some very very sorry reading for us as a people. Corruption and incompetence stamped over so much of what’s going on at the higher end of state authorities…the question is, will we rubber stamp it and keep the status quo or will we actually action real change!? 25 Sean Conway 4y Oct 11th 2018, 4:46 PM Is this a coverup because of the charleton report coming out today? 14 Frainc Ó Broin 5y Oct 11th 2018, 3:39 PM I never heard of him! Must have communicated it badly. 11 Insider at RTE 1y Oct 11th 2018, 3:32 PM Boxer for cabinet 10 Donal Desmond 3y Oct 11th 2018, 4:50 PM Fitzgerald back in the good books… Naughten resigned… lucky day for the blueshirts. 11 Rich Walsh 4y Oct 11th 2018, 4:50 PM Here we go again. Same oul story. Another election probably. Such messing and the Irish taxpayer gets screwed again. Sad really. 15 Arron 4y Oct 11th 2018, 5:41 PM Dinner together…. another one.. Christ.. no responsibility in public service whatsoever across the board. Country will never change. Good luck 10 Rory J Leonard 5y Oct 11th 2018, 4:38 PM It’s sad that an honorable, innocent, decent, hard working, but very naive man is taken out like this. With all the spin docs and comms consultants around Gov you would have thought that a Min would have been forewarned and properly briefed on protocol in these situations, especially given past history and costly failings in the granting of such monstrous government contracts in the past. The Inv House putting the deal together in NY also has a lot to learn…in doing business with Govs in EU and needs to educate itself on the relevant protocols. Who decided that having the birthday bash in the Dail restaurant was a good idea? By Mr. N. being a gentleman and hospitable to his guest on a biz mission, it has cost him his job. Zero comp for a €500m Gov contract needs careful handling 9 John Blessing 4y Oct 11th 2018, 7:47 PM @Rory J Leonard: Honorable, innocent, decent, hard working???? He’s loves brown envelopes !! 7 Dave Moran 7y Oct 11th 2018, 4:41 PM Have to say I’m surprised. Not at all normal in our political system..? 8 David Van-Standen 5y Oct 11th 2018, 5:36 PM Well this can only mean, that there will soon be yet another announcement by yet another Minister for communications, of a plan to roll out broadband nationwide…. 7 Mari 2y Oct 11th 2018, 4:16 PM U had no choice …u were wrong.. 7 eddie horgan 1y Oct 11th 2018, 6:15 PM He had to resign when it came out that he had more than one meeting. Beggars belief what he was thinking 8 gmac84 4y Oct 11th 2018, 7:31 PM All previous dealings he has had should be looked into like his cosy meetings with Eirgrid. 5 Karen Lynch 2y Oct 11th 2018, 4:50 PM A very big issue is that Eir and Siro have been left cherry pick where they will deliver to, whilst neighbours within a couple of hundred meters are with nothing. I live 10kms from Cork City Centre, 4 kms from Blarney. Not a “ribbon route” and not “a one off house”. 1.5 yrs ago, my neighbours were provided with full FTTH by Eir, whilst the remaining 400 meters stretch of road, housing 9 houses, 7 apartments and a busy pub/restaurant, were left with less than 1mg. Next tranche of houses over 2 miles away. No joined up thinking, ultimately leaving to the tax payer under the NBP to pick up the tab. My 13 yr old, 1st yr son has Dysgraphia, and uses Ass Tech, for all his educational needs. I hope he won’t be through college by the time any NBP is delivered. 7 John Blessing 4y Oct 11th 2018, 7:44 PM Brown envelope Scu&%^g, goodbye and take all the rest with you please? 6 Tony Kennedy 3y Oct 11th 2018, 6:32 PM Varadkar says he asked him to resign . Naughten says he offered to resign . ???? 5 eastsmer 6y Oct 11th 2018, 5:12 PM SICK OF FF FG LAB TRAITORS 16 Daire Friel 7y Oct 11th 2018, 7:11 PM Now maybe we will get a minister who will concentrate on the climate change and environment part of his role rather than the communications part which seemed to be what this minister spent all his time on 3 The Red Devil 7y Oct 11th 2018, 4:24 PM No my high spee…………..d ……………..broad…..ba….nd dam u Dennis naughton 7 Maurice Dodd 6y Oct 11th 2018, 9:47 PM Always looked like a sleeveen looking crook 2 Ludie Creech 4y Oct 11th 2018, 10:06 PM I think Russia is somehow involved 1 Grainnewhale 6m Oct 11th 2018, 11:14 PM Very unprofessional 1 Brian harris 1y Oct 11th 2018, 4:23 PM Good. F$#k off and bring the rest of these idiots with you. Worst Dail ever. 34 LEAVE A COMMENT LOG IN WITH: FACEBOOK TWITTER Share Comment on Facebook or Twitter POST COMMENT Read Next: 'An unprecedented number': 1,700 buildings in Dublin are awaiting protected status PROTECTED STRUCTURES Download our app Trending Opinions The Irish For: Some older words don't exist in English - clochscríbhinn means an inscription on stone Darach Ó Séaghdha George Orwell said that history was a palimpsest – a chalkboard which could be scraped clean and reinscribed, exactly as often as necessary, writes Darach Ó Séaghdha. Opinion: Claims culture is out of control - as play centres close due to being sued for kids falling Grace Vaughan Kids fall, that is what they do, it can happen anywhere. If they fall at Granny’s – do we sue the pants off Granny? From the garden: Grow, Cook, Eat is back on TV this month and we'll be tackling food waste Michael Kelly We’ll be teaching you to grow onions, pumpkins, sweetcorn, courgettes, kale, beans and chillis for all shapes and sizes of gardens, writes Michael Kelly. Most Popular Today 1 One Irish person among 157 dead after Ethiopian Airlines plane crashes en route to Kenya 2 Explainer: Here's what scrapping seasonal clock changes will mean 3 'I don't believe Irish citizens go there on their holidays': Flanagan says State will work to bring Lisa Smith back from Syria 1 Why 'under-the-radar' Marvin wants to become the number-two food delivery choice 2 How to dodge the iceberg when two workplace cultures merge 1 As it happened: Cork v Tipperary, Waterford v Galway, Wexford v Kilkenny - Sunday hurling match tracker 2 As it happened: Ireland v France, Six Nations 3 Ireland fight all the way but are no match for France in front of record crowd 1 As ethical and sustainable fashion get their moment in the sun, MURALA is an Irish brand you need to know about 2 13 very grim properties on the Dublin rental market this March 3 Huda Beauty's Huda Kattan taught us the best way to layer perfume Trending Tags BLANCHARDSTOWN 'Not now and not ever': 1,000 new homes planned for west Dublin, which locals say brings a 'high risk' of flooding Gardaí hail 'significant progress' after guns, a crossbow and drugs seized in Blanchardstown West Dublin gang using hailing apps to target older taxi drivers BREATH TESTS Santa gets the all clear to enter Irish airspace Senior traffic garda singles out gardaí he believes aren't issuing enough fines 'Significant concern' over lack of breath testing at scenes of fatal crashes NORTHERN IRELAND Jack Grealish scores winner in Second City derby after being attacked by Birmingham supporter 77-year-old man charged as part of historical clerical sex abuse probe in Belfast Mary Lou McDonald: 'I think she should go... but the problem is much bigger than Karen Bradley' GARDAí Have you seen Celia? She's been missing from Dublin for over a week Man (50s) due before special court sitting today after significant drugs seizure in Navan Gardaí fail to notify GSOC about more than half of taser discharges within required 48-hour period PSNI Man (38) who died in suspected murder-suicide named as Russell Steele 'An unspeakable tragedy': Woman and teenage daughter found dead in Newry flat named Police 'not looking for anyone else' after bodies of three people found in Newry COURT Miriam O'Callaghan files High Court case against Facebook Two men in court after ATM scamming equipment found at house in Navan Man appears in court charged over 'racially abusive' Facebook clip ∞ About Us About Us We're Hiring! Contact Us Advertise With Us Follow Us Twitter Facebook Corrections Report Content Policies Terms of Use Privacy Cookies Advertising Comments Copyright Competition Content copyright © Journal Media Ltd. 2019 Registered in Dublin, registration number: 483623. Registered office: 3rd floor, Latin Hall, Golden Lane, Dublin 8. TheJournal.ie is a full participating member of the Press Council of Ireland and supports the Office of the Press Ombudsman. This scheme in addition to defending the freedom of the press, offers readers a quick, fair and free method of dealing with complaints that they may have in relation to articles that appear on our pages. To contact the Office of the Press Ombudsman Lo-Call 1890 208 080 or go to www.pressombudsman.ie or www.presscouncil.ie Please note that TheJournal.ie uses cookies to improve your experience and to provide services and advertising. For more information on cookies please refer to our cookies policy. News images provided by Press Association and Photocall Ireland unless otherwise stated. Irish sport images provided by Inpho Photography unless otherwise stated. Wire service provided by Associated Press. Journal Media does not control and is not responsible for user created content, posts, comments, submissions or preferences. Users are reminded that they are fully responsible for their own created content and their own posts, comments and submissions and fully and effectively warrant and indemnify Journal Media in relation to such content and their ability to make such content, posts, comments and submissions available. Journal Media does not control and is not responsible for the content of external websites. Switch to Mobile Site Sites: TheJournal.ie | The42.ie | DailyEdge.ie | Fora.ie | Boards.ie | Adverts.ie | Daft.ie

[avanneman]

The Cold War: A Tale of Two Joes

I’ve been reading Norwegian historian Odd Arne Westad’s vastly ambitious and very largely successful The Cold War A World History.1 One of the great advantages of reading a European’s take is that he has a much more nuanced understanding of what was happening in Europe during the Cold War than an American historian would. He’s writing history that he himself has lived through and can rely on “original sources” of a variety and scope that no mere foreigner ever could.

The downside, of course, comes when Westad is writing about the United States, where the shoe is on the other foot. Here is what Westad says about Joe McCarthy:

“Joseph McCarthy, the demagogic and hyperbolic Wisconsin senator who through his speeches on the Senate floor came to symbolize anti-Communist paranoia, did more damage to US interests than any of Stalin’s covert operations. In February 1950 McCarthy declared that he had evidence of 205—later correct to 57—Communists working in the State Department, and denounced the president as a traitor who “sold out the Christian world to the atheistic world.” The series of hearings and investigations, which accusations such as McCarthy’s gave rise to, destroyed people’s lives and careers. Even for those who were cleared, such as the famous central Asia scholar Owen Lattimore, some of the accusations stuck and made it difficult to find employment, as Lattimore said in his book title from 1950, Ordeal by Slander. For many of the lesser known who were targeted—workers, actors, teachers, lawyers—it was a Kafkaesque world, where their words were twisted and used against them during public hearings by people who had no knowledge of the victims or their activities. Behind all of it was the political purpose of harming the Administration, though even some Democrats were caught up in the frenzy and the president himself straddled the issue instead of publicly confronting McCarthy. McCarthyism, as it was soon called, reduced the US standing in the world and greatly helped Soviet propaganda, especially in western Europe.”

Well, very largely true, but Westad fails to provide sufficient context. He gives the reader no information whatsoever on Soviet espionage in the U.S., never even mentioning either Alger Hiss or the Rosenbergs. Historian John Earl Haynes, in his essay “An Essay on Historical Writing on Domestic Communism and Anti-Communism”, gives a little more detail: “Hundreds of Americans, most Communists, assisted Soviet espionage and Soviet intelligence sources included dozens of mid-level government officials but also impressively high level ones as well: not only Alger Hiss but also Lawrence Duggan, long-time head of the State Department Division of the American Republics; Lauchlin Currie, a senior White House aide to President Roosevelt; Duncan Lee, a senior officer in the Office of Strategic Services; and, most significantly, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Harry White.”

It is, in fact, “arguable” that the course of the Cold War was significantly shaped for the worse by the theft of America’s atomic secrets by Soviet espionage, although this was largely due to the British spy Klaus Fuchs rather than the spy ring organized by Julius Rosenberg. If the Soviets had not obtained the bomb in 1949, it’s possible that Stalin would not have given the green light to North Korea’s invasion of the South in 1950. A Cold War without the Korean War would have been a different beast. How different I cannot imagine, but the course of American politics would have been far smoother without the rancor induced both by the theft of the secrets and the war.

Fortunately, Westad is more clear-eyed when it comes to the other Joe:

“The alarm that the Cold War created in the United States paled in comparison to the spasms that the Soviet Union and eastern Europe went through. Up to Stalin’s death in 1953, denunciations, purges, and show trials were the order of the day. … The first problem was the hundreds of thousands of soldiers who returned from German prison camps; could they be trusted? More than a third of them were marched straight from German to Soviet prison camps. Then there were those who had lived under German occupation; most were investigated and many, including all Communist Party officials there, were sent to the camps. Even victorious Red Army soldiers returning from the battlefield were seen as suspect. They may have glimpsed ways of life abroad that were inconsistent with Soviet visions of the future.”

Westad describes the enormous transfers of populations that occurred both during and after World War II as the Soviets’ “worst crime”. At the start of the war, more than a million Germans living in the USSR were transported into eastern Russia, along with a million Muslims in the Caucasus and Crimea. About 20 percent of these people would die within three years of their departure from what was once their home. As the war closed, mass deportations from the reconquered territories—the Baltic states, Ukraine, Belorussia, and Poland began. There were also mass transfers of populations from the other end of the Soviet Union. When Japan absorbed Korea into its empire, hundreds of thousands of Koreans fled into Russia. When conditions between the USSR and Japan worsened, Stalin moved these people into central Asia. By the time Stalin died, the Soviet GULag prison system held over two and half million inmates.

The U.S., of course, had its own relocation program—over 110,000 Japanese Americans living on the West Coast were removed to internment camps in remote locations. But these relocations, though brutal (and racist) enough, only lasted for three years and in fact a quarter of those relocated left the camps before they closed to live freely in other parts of the U.S., where they would not be a “danger”.

The “death toll” for the McCarthy era amounted to two persons, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. McCarthy, of course, played no role in their prosecution or their execution, which appears to have been the decision of one man, Judge Irving Kaufman, who went out of his way to preclude the U.S. attorneys who tried the case from giving him recommendations for sentencing. President Eisenhower rejected suggestions from FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover that he commute Ethel Rosenberg’s sentence.2

Afterwords Very unfortunately for his party, Franklin Roosevelt would not have cared if there were 57 communists in the State Department (205 might have been too much). While many New Deal liberals, like Hubert Humphry, were knowledgeable and bitter anti-communists, thanks to long struggles for control in the labor movement, many, like Roosevelt, were not, and insisted on thinking of communists as “progressive”—progressives who just seemed to have the strange habit of murdering anyone they disagreed with. Roosevelt honestly hated the Nazis, with their cult of war and bloodshed, but the communists were different! They said so themselves! Perhaps most of all, Roosevelt hated the red-baiting of the right wing, who insisted on labeling any liberal proposal as a communist plot, and, as a consequence, he reflexively rejected any accusations of communist “penetration” out of hand. Even if it was true it didn’t matter, so why admit that it was true?

Rather remarkably, I don’t think Roosevelt’s rosy vision of the Soviet Union led him to give Stalin anything Stalin didn’t already have. At the Yalta Conference, the Red Army was already the sole military power in eastern Europe. Roosevelt (and Churchill) ratified an existing reality. At the same time, Roosevelt obtained Stalin’s pledge to join in the war against Japan, causing the notoriously hard-boiled Ernie King to exclaim “We just saved a million American lives!”3 However clear-eyed Roosevelt was about Stalin personally, he should have made others more aware of the true nature of Stalin’s plans for eastern Europe. It’s painful to learn that someone as shrewd as Harry Hopkins believed, as he did believe, that Stalin could be trusted to bring democracy to Poland.

Westad appears to have written the book in English. He once uses “weariness” when he meant “wariness” (probably a typo), but used “prevaricate” when he means “procrastinate” three or four times. ↩︎

I’ve talked about the McCarthy era in a number of posts labeled soviet spies ↩︎

King, the second highest ranking U.S. naval officer in World War II, was described by Eisenhower as “a mental bully, the kind of man I hate!” King, like many U.S. naval officers, was a compulsive Anglophobe, and Eisenhower would often say that the greatest contribution anyone could make to Allied unity would be to kill Ernie King. ↩︎

[fleurdelissaswords-blog]

ANNOUNCING GAMMA ZETA LIE SORORITY'S 4th ANNUAL PRE-PLL 7B RECRUITMENT DRIVE!!! WANNA BE A MEMBER OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS GROUP IN THE FANDOM? Here's how we do & all of the official rulesies & stuff, cuz twitter doesn't gimme enough creative license to explain it all over there where we do most our recruiting. If you're reading this, it's likely because I needed a place to explain to potential new recruits who we are and what we do, since twitter character counts suck for this kind of thang. If you were sent a link to here, it is because we might think you have what to takes to be one of us, & don't have enough room on twitter to explain to you why you are being tapped for our lil secret society. At GZL We Are: The Best of the Best Theorists in the Fandom! It's a huge honor to get asked... in fact it's the only way one can join a secret society, so that's how we do. THIS YEAR WE DOING THINGS A BIT DIFFERENTLY & 💌 WHAT AN INVITE MEANS IF YOU SEE ONE IN YOUR INBOX ON ANY SOCIAL MEDIA!!! 💌 In years past, we did a strict "Invite Only" recruitment drive based on seeing amazing theories and skill sets we needed for our detective work Solving -A as a team in GZL, and publishing our findings before the finale airs. To date: we have a perfect solve record! So we began to take on new shows during the booooring hiatus season, to keep our skills sharp and all. During PLL season we all come together and buckle down to kick some ass in the fandom theories. And we are very good at what we do! We know a lot of you fans out there are too! So this year we are sending out our #GZL tapping scouts to tap whomever we come across in fandom posts and theories and blogs whom we think are good potential recruits based on a not-as-strict method, which means YOU just might get in this year! Might as well go out with a bang and share the amazing GZL experience with as many worthy fans as we can find. But our actual application process will be a bit easier just to give more fans the chance to join in PLL's last season. Why not open the doors?! Ok, we will do it "Secret Society Light" style. Meaning, we still wanna see your excellent posts with theories and ideas and good questions to mar and all that good stuff. But maybe your question to Mar will get you and invite! We still wanna see those good thoughts and theories on #Twitter, #Tumblr, #FB, #Youtube, etc. In the past we recruited strictly from Twitter. This year you just may see us... EVERYWHERE!!! 👀💋 IF YOU WANT US TO SEE YOUR THEORY OR POST: Tag me at @SoliSacrdotibus + #GZL on twitter or here on tumblr with #GZL, so we can find your posts, and we will be sending out our cryptic lil invite links in people's inboxes on whatever social media we find you on! 😜✊🏽 So make sure to also follow me here and on Twitter so I can dm/pm invites! We want fresh blood this season. It's our last as a strictly PLL theory co-op group. We will likely continue by doing other shows in the future since we have this whole thang now, & people know who we are. And Yes, the #PLLBlacklist, where theory thieves get named so the fandom knows to avoid them, & other PLL party foulers as well WILL BE RETURNING TO KEEP THINGS HONEST IN THE FANDOM! (Know someone who stole your theory? Copyright infringements on your fanfic someone else used? A bully in the fandom harassing other fans? (Cuz let's face it: GZL is the ONLY group entitled to do that! So keep your fanitude at the door lest we see it!) Dm/PM me their handle privately and we can Investigate and list them/l. Secret societies are required to do a philanthropy project (charity) Each year, so it's our little gift to the fandom which has given us so many talented creative people over the years. To date: we have recruited lawyers, detectives, graphic designers (like the one pictured here, one of our coveted award templates), TV show hosts, code experts, foreign language speakers, psychology experts, all sorts of people from all walks of life around the world, with skills that help when Solving for -A as a group (& no egos allowed!) The project was envisioned by myself and a good friend in the fandom who decided if one fan could not solve it alone completely, a group might do better. We were all very good at this by s3-4 on our own, and we all had seen amazing theories out there. So we began secretly recruiting these people. We kept this secret for a while. We all became good friends over the years. I am truly blessed to have such an amazing team. Chances are one of your PLL fandom buddies could secretly be a member and you might not even know it. Lol. We liked it that way. But times change and so do we. Hey, even the monarchy had to modernize! 👸 To date we have a few Theory & Contest Winners as well as a few other honors, and have had correct theories for the last several seasons in a perfect record. We leave our own theories at the door to work as a team and it's fun. So it's not a place to share personal blog links for self promotion (unless you are agreeing to allow #GZL to use parts of it and credit you accordingly, when GzL goes to publish the Master Theory we come up with). We work hard and we play hard. It was always hard to get in cuz we were the best of the best... if you even knew about us in the early days. 😉 Next thing we knew, despite stating our group was "Invite Only & Merit Based," #PLL fans were banging our door down. We also pride ourselves on being able to "Keep A Secret" 💋 and our rules state once you are allowed in, you cannot share posts from within the group, outside elsewhere. You basically take a vow of secrecy on what we do within the group. Any theories we are working on, we've put a lot of effort in all season as a team and cannot risk that being ruined cuz of a few blabbermouths. So we look for maturity, good detective skills, good memories, and being able to get along, cuz we are all fellow sisters/brothers in this society. So we don't share member's private business outside the group either or tip the fandom off if we happen to have any leads. Make sense? This is NOT a group for basic #fangirling about your cast crush... although we do have some specialized awards for hard workers, including our much beloved: Naked Toby, Nekkid Jason, & Hot Ezra awards to reward members. We need people who speak foreign languages, are good with timelines, good with techy skills (understands the technology -A uses on the show, like how to hack, & stuff like Mona does). We also need people good with numbers for our code breakers team, people good with literary references, getting all the right screenshots, compiling and posting mar's clues, keeping tabs on the many evergrowing "-A" clue handles, people who write articles or recaps on the show and have good minds for remembering the tiniest details, etc. Everyone has a skill that can be of use to our group project Solving Uber -A for 7b BEFORE the finale airs! Are YOU up for the challenge? Of course we don't allow any swearing, bullying, personal attacks, blabbermouths, and people just out to join groups to promote their own blog... trust me if you're an asset to our group project, the members will know your private blogs you have for your own stuff as well, cuz we all become pretty good friends. We don't allow off-topic posts during PLL season about other shows and stuff. We have an amazing team of Admins, & myself: The Housemother... yes I can be as strict as The Grunwald, but don't let that scare you. I reward hard work as well! I've even helped get dream jobs for members, cuz in a secret society people tend to help each other out. As we begin our #PLL 7b GZL Recruitment for 2017, we will be keeping an eye out for fans out there with potential to invite to join. And whereas in past seasons we've maybe only let a few new members in, this season I want to add as many awesome fans as we find worthy!... And so many of you are! We see your amazing theories and edits. We see your questions to Mar. Like a good secret society: WE ARE ALWAYS WATCHING!!! 👀 If you've been lead here by a link or someone tagging your post with #GZL, or this link explaining who we are and what we do, now you know. It's a big honor to be invited and we don't usually open the doors this wide. So this is YOUR season to get into #GZL if you've always wanted, or wondered what we're about or how we always get things right and come out on top at the end of every season. This is a basic outline of our rules and expectations as well. If you can adhere to it (& the real list of rules in our group description) we'd be happy to have to your superfan brainpower on our team... then you can get credit in our Master Theories (We really should Call them "Master Solves" cuz a theory is only a theory till it's proven correct! Then it's the -Answer. 😉 If you like what you see here, cuz you found this link in your inbox cryptically like we do, the next step is the official Invite link! 😘💌 Cuz we totally plan to keep this thang going after #PLL ends... we took a vote and decided to continue on doing other new shows. And you can get in on our last season of PLL and ground floor of whatever we go on to do next! We won't likely open the doors like this again. It's just not good business for a secret society. They're supposed to have all these standards and secrets and stuff. Lol. But why not in the last season of PLL do something cool like let more people join and participate in what will be a life changing experience for fans. *And Current Members: feel free to add anything I missed here below in the comments. I did this quickly to have something up. And don't judge my typos... it's late. Lol. And stay tuned on this blog for other #GZL & #PLL related posts. This is where it will all happen... where we solve dis shiz! And check out my other cool series in my archive: Tupeck the Rapping Parrot's ThugLife Bible Study. Home Brewing Tips & Recipes Movie & TV Recaps that Will Leave You Laughing ... and much more! Note: Our own AMAZING resident Graphic Designer #GZL (Gamma Zeta Lie sorority, the best of the best theorists in the #PLL fandom, where we secretly meet to discuss ideas and such) made this awesome GZL logo, and award template for members who win this coveted status. I ❤ U & Your Amazing GraphicSkillzies Becks! 😘 Keep Up The Good Work! She gets full credit for this design. Find her on Twitter here: @becky411. Some other members on the twitter fandom to follow: @kellie_tv @kkthanks @charlesgame @SimplyMeSCC @emma_eden @thepllfanxx @moviesandtv23 @floptina @BamitzTylerr @madboss889 @notxme @thesnootyllama Sisters/brothers are forever! 😘❤ AT GZL WE GO BIG OR GO HOME! So come join us. But be prepared to pitch in however we can use you. We always have lots of stuff to do! And that's how awards are won... and careers are made. I took the liberty to tag a few of our fav PLL blogs we've had our eyes on or think hold promise. Maybe we will choose a few of you! 😉 Reblog this post to help us get the word out about our new #GZL recruitment for 7b for a second look at your blog and invites... @hollymariecombs @ellamontgomeryx-blog @marleneking-blog @marlenekingisa @imarleneking-blog @imarlene-fuckshitup-king @imarlenegatsby @imarlene008-blog @shaymitchdailyy @shaymitchellbeauty @shaymitchellteam @emisonisforever @emisonislifeok @emison-sashay-endgame @endgamezria @sashapietersedaily @sashapieterses @prettylittletheoriesandspoilers @prettylittleinvestigators @monavanderslayy @monavanderwaal @monavanderjesus @lucyhale @lucyhalefansite @lucyhaleheaders @lucyhale-daily @ashleybenson-style @ashleybenson-peru @ashleybensonfashionstyle @pretty-little-liars-hints @prettylittleliarsquestions @prettylittleliarsxxxx