The FBI vs. Ray Bradbury

[Rizla]

Bradbury got all grumpy when Michael Moore based the title of one his films on Fahrenheit 451. So these reports are kinda ironic.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Rizla

Edit: Fast was imprisoned by the House of Un-American Activities Committee, which McCarthy had no direct connection to.

I think you probably mean the "House Committee on Unamerican Activities" .

[GA Russell]

Harry, it was called "HUAC" (hew-ack), for House Un-American Activities Committee.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Harry, it was called "HUAC" (hew-ack), for House Un-American Activities Committee.

Yes, but it wasn't the "House of unamerican activities" . That would have a somewhat different meaning.

[Rizla]

I added the "of." I assumed it was a typo on Wiki. I guess Congress has grammar issues among other things.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Rizla

I added the "of." I assumed it was a typo on Wiki. I guess Congress has grammar issues among other things.

No, in this case "House" means "House of Representatives", one of the two chambers of Congress. Ie, it was a committee of the "House", as opposed to the "Senate".

The reason I've always been suspicious of something called House Un-American Activities Committee (and any equivalent in the Senate) is that such investigations are seldom limited to what I would call Un-American activities. So what would I classify as Un-American? Basically attempts to over throw the US government, abrogate the US Constitution, or engage in treasonous activities, especially if done so by means of violence. That would make targets of groups on both the right and left. Say (reflecting my age) the Ku Klux Klan or the Weather Underground. What it would not include is advocating and attempting to implement through the ballot box "Socialist" or "Communist" labeled policies. Or the Civil Rights movement. Or the Anti [Vietnam] War Movement. You get the idea I presume. And that ends my discussion of a politicized thread.

[Phogg]

Originally Posted by Rizla

What about Howard Fast, the author of Spartacus? He was imprisoned for refusing to reveal the names of people who had collected money for refugees fleeing the Franco dictatorship.

His imprisonment was the inspiration for Spartacus, which inspired the film.

Edit: Fast was imprisoned by the House of Un-American Activities Committee, which McCarthy had no direct connection to.

He didn't have an indirect connection to it either. That happened before McCarthy's entry into politics.
The term for that is "unrelated. " The term for connecting the two is "spurious allegation."

[Phogg]

Originally Posted by Hamlet53

The reason I've always been suspicious of something called House Un-American Activities Committee (and any equivalent in the Senate) is that such investigations are seldom limited to what I would call Un-American activities. So what would I classify as Un-American? Basically attempts to over throw the US government, abrogate the US Constitution, or engage in treasonous activities, especially if done so by means of violence. That would make targets of groups on both the right and left. Say (reflecting my age) the Ku Klux Klan or the Weather Underground. What it would not include is advocating and attempting to implement through the ballot box "Socialist" or "Communist" labeled policies. Or the Civil Rights movement. Or the Anti [Vietnam] War Movement. You get the idea I presume. And that ends my discussion of a politicized thread.

McCarthy's Senate investigations were not any such broad brush fishing expedition.
They were focused on removing actors for the Soviet Government who had already been identified by United States intelligence.
Our spies had outed their spies.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Yes, but it wasn't the "House of unamerican activities" . That would have a somewhat different meaning.

I think that's where I went for pancakes this morning.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by Phogg

McCarthy's Senate investigations were not any such broad brush fishing expedition.
They were focused on removing actors for the Soviet Government who had already been identified by United States intelligence.
Our spies had outed their spies.

And a young man by the name of Richard Nixon was also involved in the Un-American activities commission I believe. Interesting how they claimed to want to protect America but then did such un-american things themselves.

[murg]

Originally Posted by crich70

And a young man by the name of Richard Nixon was also involved in the Un-American activities commission I believe. Interesting how they claimed to want to protect America but then did such un-american things themselves.

What they did was very American.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by murg

What they did was very American.

LOL