Greg Mitchell's Blog, page 279
May 8, 2013
Ariel Castro, Social Media Nerd
NYT tonight analyzes accused Cleveland monster Ariel Castro's Facebook postings, which began only this past February. Yes, he loved to LOL, and enjoyed the morning song of the cardinal, and had 41 friends.
He “liked” more than 100 photos. They included a picture of one of the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings in the hospital with the actor Bradley Cooper at his side, and another of Jennifer Lopez. He also “liked” several photos containing Christian messages that do not fit easily with the events said to have unfolded since 2002, or with the more than 200 pieces of evidence taken from his home since Monday.
He “liked” a photo that read: “It’s really nice to wake up in the morning, realizing that God has given me another day to live. Like if you agree!” Another message read, “Like if you need Jesus’ help.”His final post: “Miracles really do happen, God is good. :)”
Cicadas and Hiroshima
Much discussion these days about the return of the cicadas in the U.S. after a 17-year nap (or something), with one even spotted in Midtown Manhattan yesterday! I remember when my son's grade school class was obsessed with them...17 years ago. But my association is quite different. In Japan they get active, and very noisy, every summer (see article here)--they're calls "semi" there--and when I arrived in Hiroshima for a month on a journalism grant back in the 1980s I was told by a native that they would soon start to drive me crazy. Indeed, their song would soon begin and every day they grew louder, but mainly background noise.Wouldn't you know it but they reached their peak--or so it seemed--on the morning of....August 6. As I sat at the annual memorial program for the victims of the atomic bomb--well over 125,000--and survivors they buzzed all around the Peace Park, almost deafening. It was as if the souls of 125,000 were crying, screaming, screeching. People ask me why I've kept writing about the atomic bombings for thirty years now (including in three books, just recently Atomic Cover-up and Hollywood Bomb ), and now you know one of the reasons.
Charles Ramsay: Domestic Particulars
UPDATE Do you know that Charles Ramsay was not first person to reach that door in Cleveland? The unsung hero was Angel Cordero and why: He doesn't speak good English and didn't do viral video. Smoking Gun reporting that Cleveland hero, and wild talker, has been jailed three times for domestic violence charges, and served eight months in state prison. And: "In 2003, Ramsey was indicted for felony 'domestic violence with prior conviction,' as a result of the previous cases. It was in 2003 that Ramsey’s wife, Rochelle, filed for divorce, citing 'gross neglect of duty' and 'extreme cruelty.' Rochelle went on to tell the Smoking Gun that Ramsey has since apologized to her for past abuse, and that the pair remain on an 'okay basis.'” But she notes he has failed to pay child support, and had his driving privileges taken away because of that.
Surprise: Ariel Castro Taking Rap, Two Brothers Not Charged
UPDATE: Cleveland TV station says it has police report detailing chilling bruality by Castro, including beatings and forced starvation and claim that he impregnated Knight five times, and made her deliver Amanda's baby in the basement in a plastic swiming pool.Earlier: Since it was his home, Ariel Castro has been prime suspect in brutal kidnapping, probable rape/torture, case, but his two brothers also arrested and their mug shots widely distributed. Just now charges announced against Ariel but not brothers. Ariel gets four counts of kidnapping and three of rape. Police: "Ariel kept everyone at a distance." They were taken into custody "because they were with their brother." Had "probable cause." But "no facts to link to crime." Still held on outstanding warrants.
Another surprise, police say: Three women only left outside twice, and briefly, and never in chains naked in backyard. (So much for neighbors' claims, as I warned. ) They also dispute some other statements in press. But confirm Amanda's only chance to escape was this week--her only attempt. No details on how kidnapped. Asked about conditions in house will only say, "The house was in disarray." No comments on child or other pregnancies. Only two times they left house was when taken to garage, "in disguise," never off property.
Atomic Scientists and a Hollywood 'Bomb'
And now a second free excerpt from my new e-book, Hollywood Bomb: The Unmaking of the 'The Most Important Movie' Ever Made. The book tells the wild tale of how MGM set out in 1945 to make the first epic about the making and use of the atomic bomb against Japan, intending to warn about nuclear dangers--inspired by scientists who had worked on The Bomb. But soon, under pressure from the military and the White House, the movie's script switched to glorifying the new weapon.
*
Many of the scientists impersonated in the film expressed concerns, but nearly all signed releases. The scientists were willing to sacrifice accuracy "if the story of the atomic crisis is gotten across well," as one of them commented. But James B. Conant, a key member of the official advisory panel on using the bomb against Japan, was so cool to the idea that his dialogue was cut completely. Vannevar Bush at first refused to signed the release, citing inaccuracies—the script had him raising doubts about whether the bomb would fit on a plane and would be completed on time--although it seems that he was most concerned that the script did not give him sufficient credit for selling the bomb project to President Roosevelt.
Bush contacted the White House to find out if Truman "approved" the picture, since the film would “fix a pattern of history in the minds of the American people” and so “ought to be as accurate as possible.” In a rather disingenuous reply, Charles Ross replied that the White House neither approved nor disapproved the film, and simply had asked for changes about how his boss was portrayed on screen. Ross insisted that Truman "did not want to seem to be persuading anybody" to sign a release. Bush ultimately did give his consent; and in the finished film, he indeed received full credit for selling the need to invent the bomb to Roosevelt-- no small thing.
Friends of Robert Oppenheimer were already alarmed that he was exhibiting extreme signs of grief and depression over his role in creating the new weapon. But he went along with the pro-Bomb changes in the film’s message rather meekly, perhaps pleased with his key role as narrator of the picture (via Hume Cronyn). Oppenheimer and his wife both told Sam Marx early on that the film contained many factual errors and flaws of characterization. He said that the script was “not bad generally” but protested that the film's characters lacked "purpose or insight.” Well, it did omit that famous Oppenheimer line he supposedly uttered after witnessing the Trinity test, from the Bhagavad Gita: “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.”
Marx on April 2, 1946, replied: “the character of J. Robert Oppenheimer must be an extremely pleasant one with a love of mankind, humility and a pretty fair knack of cooking.” Cronyn advised Oppenheimer, “I gather that simplicity, warmth and complete lack of affectation are essential to your character.”
The waiver signed by Oppenheimer (and probably others) read: “I understand that although you will attempt to show the historical facts with accuracy, you will however have to dramatize your motion picture story, and I have no objection thereto, and you may rely on my personal irrevocable consent to proceed.” When another scientist asked why in the world he had signed a release, Oppenheimer replied that the picture would be portraying them as “ordinary decent guys, that they worried like hell about the bomb, that it presents a major issue of good and evil to the people of the world.” The screenplay he admitted was not “beautiful, wise, or deep” but “it did not lie in my power to make it so.”
Oppenheimer paid a visit to the set in Hollywood one day during shooting. Watching from the camera boom, the lanky Oppenheimer doffed his trademark pork pie hat to Hume Cronyn, the smallish actor playing him in the movie--then sailed the hat to him, shouting, "Hello, Oppie!"
The Hollywoodization of the bomb had truly begun.
Leo Szilard, who had mounted a last-minute protest among the scientists to halt Truman from using the new weapon they had created against people, also came to Hollywood and even wrote a new scene, which featured himself, of course. Szilard had written to a friend that dropping the bomb was “one of the greatest blunders of history” but signed a release for a film that would impart quite a different message. Perhaps he had just lost heart. The U.S. was already setting off spectacular bomb tests near Bikini in the Pacific.
Louis B. Mayer personally assured Albert Einstein that "dramatic truth" was "just as compelling a requirement" for the film-makers as "veritable truth" was for the scientists. This should have raised more doubts than it quieted, but Einstein, pushed by Szilard, signed the release anyway. (Niels Bohr was one of the few famed scientists who refused permission, and threatened to sue the studio if his wishes were ignored. Lise Meitner also held out, even though fine actress Agnes Moorhead was set to play her.)
When three well-known scientists raised other concerns, Sam Marx re-assured them by pointing out that John Hersey’s historic and very popular article (later a book) in The New Yorker on the aftermath of the bombing in Hiroshima “is making many readers feel that the creators of the atomic bomb are the world’s greatest war criminals.” Therefore “it should be a relief to many scientists that a motion picture of this magnitude is on its way, hailing their achievement as the most magnificent triumph of modern times.” Of course, the scientists who had inspired the film at the start believed no such thing (or at least felt deeply conflicted about it).
Truman, for his part, refused—or in any case, failed—to read any of Hersey’s article.
*
Many of the scientists impersonated in the film expressed concerns, but nearly all signed releases. The scientists were willing to sacrifice accuracy "if the story of the atomic crisis is gotten across well," as one of them commented. But James B. Conant, a key member of the official advisory panel on using the bomb against Japan, was so cool to the idea that his dialogue was cut completely. Vannevar Bush at first refused to signed the release, citing inaccuracies—the script had him raising doubts about whether the bomb would fit on a plane and would be completed on time--although it seems that he was most concerned that the script did not give him sufficient credit for selling the bomb project to President Roosevelt.
Bush contacted the White House to find out if Truman "approved" the picture, since the film would “fix a pattern of history in the minds of the American people” and so “ought to be as accurate as possible.” In a rather disingenuous reply, Charles Ross replied that the White House neither approved nor disapproved the film, and simply had asked for changes about how his boss was portrayed on screen. Ross insisted that Truman "did not want to seem to be persuading anybody" to sign a release. Bush ultimately did give his consent; and in the finished film, he indeed received full credit for selling the need to invent the bomb to Roosevelt-- no small thing.
Friends of Robert Oppenheimer were already alarmed that he was exhibiting extreme signs of grief and depression over his role in creating the new weapon. But he went along with the pro-Bomb changes in the film’s message rather meekly, perhaps pleased with his key role as narrator of the picture (via Hume Cronyn). Oppenheimer and his wife both told Sam Marx early on that the film contained many factual errors and flaws of characterization. He said that the script was “not bad generally” but protested that the film's characters lacked "purpose or insight.” Well, it did omit that famous Oppenheimer line he supposedly uttered after witnessing the Trinity test, from the Bhagavad Gita: “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.”
Marx on April 2, 1946, replied: “the character of J. Robert Oppenheimer must be an extremely pleasant one with a love of mankind, humility and a pretty fair knack of cooking.” Cronyn advised Oppenheimer, “I gather that simplicity, warmth and complete lack of affectation are essential to your character.”
The waiver signed by Oppenheimer (and probably others) read: “I understand that although you will attempt to show the historical facts with accuracy, you will however have to dramatize your motion picture story, and I have no objection thereto, and you may rely on my personal irrevocable consent to proceed.” When another scientist asked why in the world he had signed a release, Oppenheimer replied that the picture would be portraying them as “ordinary decent guys, that they worried like hell about the bomb, that it presents a major issue of good and evil to the people of the world.” The screenplay he admitted was not “beautiful, wise, or deep” but “it did not lie in my power to make it so.”
Oppenheimer paid a visit to the set in Hollywood one day during shooting. Watching from the camera boom, the lanky Oppenheimer doffed his trademark pork pie hat to Hume Cronyn, the smallish actor playing him in the movie--then sailed the hat to him, shouting, "Hello, Oppie!"
The Hollywoodization of the bomb had truly begun.
Leo Szilard, who had mounted a last-minute protest among the scientists to halt Truman from using the new weapon they had created against people, also came to Hollywood and even wrote a new scene, which featured himself, of course. Szilard had written to a friend that dropping the bomb was “one of the greatest blunders of history” but signed a release for a film that would impart quite a different message. Perhaps he had just lost heart. The U.S. was already setting off spectacular bomb tests near Bikini in the Pacific.
Louis B. Mayer personally assured Albert Einstein that "dramatic truth" was "just as compelling a requirement" for the film-makers as "veritable truth" was for the scientists. This should have raised more doubts than it quieted, but Einstein, pushed by Szilard, signed the release anyway. (Niels Bohr was one of the few famed scientists who refused permission, and threatened to sue the studio if his wishes were ignored. Lise Meitner also held out, even though fine actress Agnes Moorhead was set to play her.)
When three well-known scientists raised other concerns, Sam Marx re-assured them by pointing out that John Hersey’s historic and very popular article (later a book) in The New Yorker on the aftermath of the bombing in Hiroshima “is making many readers feel that the creators of the atomic bomb are the world’s greatest war criminals.” Therefore “it should be a relief to many scientists that a motion picture of this magnitude is on its way, hailing their achievement as the most magnificent triumph of modern times.” Of course, the scientists who had inspired the film at the start believed no such thing (or at least felt deeply conflicted about it).
Truman, for his part, refused—or in any case, failed—to read any of Hersey’s article.
Today's Tale from Gun Nutty USA
Unfortunately, we have to cover one of these every day. Just yesteday a 13-year-old fatally shot his 6-year-old sister, also in Florida. Today's tragedy:
A 3-year-old boy in Tampa, Florida fatally shot himself with his uncle's gun on Tuesday evening, the Tampa Bay Times reports. The boy found the 9mm gun in a backpack in the bedroom he shared with his 29-year-old uncle, Jeffrey D. Walker, and accidentally discharged it.
Walker was arrested Tuesday and charged with culpable negligence. He held a concealed weapons permit, authorities told the Tampa Bay Times. The boy's parents, Jasmine Bell, 21, and Trentin Speights, 22, were in their bedroom at the time of the shooting.
Minnesota Terror Suspect:: Remember Him?
After a flurry of media interest, the arrest of a (native and white) alleged terror plotter--guns and pipe bombs--in Minnesota has pretty much disappeared. So, an update on Mr. Buford "Bucky" Rogers. Can't beat this opener:
The Black Snake Militia’s home base is the Rogers family trailer on the north end of town, where the group’s initials are spray-painted on a repurposed Farm Bureau sign and passerby are greeted by a handmade warning about the dangers of government tracking devices. “We are not slaves,” the cardboard placard says.Also:
“The government’s railroading my kid, probably because of all the bombings and crap,” he said looking up from his work. “It’s just like the Boston one. All of us believe that’s false. A government deal.”
Bowie: The Marion Kind?
David Bowie's new video stars Marion Cotillard as prostitute plus Gary OIdman in church brothel.
May 7, 2013
For the Cicadas
Cicada spokesman on returning after 17 years: "Man, we're glad to learn we slept through another Bush presidency." Also, surprised that Leonard Cohen is a leading arena act.
Dylan, "The Day of the Locusts." Oddly, about when he picked up honorary degree at Princeton.
Dylan, "The Day of the Locusts." Oddly, about when he picked up honorary degree at Princeton.
Sanford Does Not "Trail" Colbert Busch at End of Night
UPDATE: It's all over, and Sanford wins comfortably. In case you wondered if there are two Americas today.
Earlier: Live vote updates from South Carolina here with real-time frequent updates. Right now Sanford with 5,000 vote and 5% lead with good amount in. But less of vote in Charleston. Is that good for her? Markos Mouilitsas tweets: "Win-win tonight: either Colbert-Bush wins, and we pick up a seat, or Sanford wins, and we make fun of "family values" Republicans forever." Markos said she had to be within 1% in Beaufort County to win and now vote is all in there and she lost by 6% there. Curtains?
Earlier: Live vote updates from South Carolina here with real-time frequent updates. Right now Sanford with 5,000 vote and 5% lead with good amount in. But less of vote in Charleston. Is that good for her? Markos Mouilitsas tweets: "Win-win tonight: either Colbert-Bush wins, and we pick up a seat, or Sanford wins, and we make fun of "family values" Republicans forever." Markos said she had to be within 1% in Beaufort County to win and now vote is all in there and she lost by 6% there. Curtains?
