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In reply to the discussion: If you don't think we're already living in a police state, consider this. [View all]MinM
(2,650 posts)73. Daniel Schorr was fired by CBS over the Richard Welch case too ..
...On January 16, 1975 he held a White House luncheon for the editors of the NY Times. Someone asked why Ford had picked such a conservative and defense minded panel to make up the Rockefeller Commission (e.g. Ronald Reagan was a member). The president said he needed people who would not stray from the straight and narrow. If they did, they could stumble upon matters that might hurt the national interest. The editor asked "Like what?" Ford replied with, "Like assassinations!" (Schorr, p. 144) Ford added that this was off the record. But reporter Daniel Schorr deduced that since the Rockefeller Commission was investigating domestic matters, Ford must have meant American assassinations. (ibid) But later CIA Director William Colby effectively spun Ford's comment . He told Schorr that the CIA had run assassination plots abroad, but not in America. (ibid) This deftly neutralized Ford's slip. The committees would now look at CIA assassination plots against foreign leaders. In regards to the JFK case, the Church Committee would only investigate the performance of the intelligence agencies in investigating Kennedy's murder.
But even Colby was too much for Ford. He was deemed too open with congress. After all, when mobster Sam Giancana was murdered before testifying, Colby went out of his way to say the CIA had nothing to do with it. (ibid, p. 155) Colby was later fired for being too forthcoming. Ford picked George Bush to replace him. And as further signal of his new "get tough" policy, Ford made a young Dick Cheney his Chief of Staff, and moved Donald Rumsfeld into the Pentagon.
With all these elements in place, Ford decided to use the 1975 murder of a CIA officer as a way to squelch and smear any further investigation. Richard Welch was the CIA station chief in Athens. The CIA and Ford blamed his death on the fact that his name had been exposed by an American journal called Counterspy. In fact, the leftist rebel group who killed him had issued a communiqué beforehand that revealed they knew his name then. (Schorr, p. 191) In a classic case of political propaganda, Ford and the CIA pulled out all the stops in using Welch's funeral as psychological warfare against the committees. Welch's body was flown into Andrews Air Force Base. But the plane circled the base for 15 minutes to time the landing for the morning news shows. (ibid) Ford attended the chapel service. But the press was barred in order to suggest that they were to blame for Welch's murder. Colby issued a statement saying that Welch's death was the result of a "paranoiac attack on ... Americans serving their country." David Phillips was interviewed by CBS and said, American agents are in less danger today from the KGB than from the "moral primitives" who "condemn my label". (ibid) Welch's body was buried at Arlington with full military honors. His coffin was carried on the same horse-drawn caisson that carried President Kennedy's. Colby gave the flag draped over it to Welch's widow. As Schorr wrote, "This is the CIA's first secret agent to become a pubic national hero." (ibid)
It worked. Henry Kissinger jumped on the committees: "I think they have used classified information in a reckless way ... " (ibid p. 194) Both committees closed up shop shortly after. Ford and the CIA held veto power over what could be published. When Otis Pike defied that agreement, Congress bottled up his report. A copy was smuggled to Daniel Schorr. As he was arranging to have it released, his boss, Bill Paley, lunched with Bush. (ibid, p. 201) The Pike Report was published in a special issue of The Village Voice. Forgetting his own use of classified material for his Oswald book, Ford now proposed an FBI investigation to find out who gave the report to Schorr. (ibid, p. 208) After Paley's meeting with Director Bush, Schorr was taken off the air by CBS. After a two hour impromptu interrogation during which he was not represented by counsel Schorr was fired by the network. He was later investigated by the House but refused to reveal his source for the report...
http://www.ctka.net/2008/bugliosi_8_review.html
But even Colby was too much for Ford. He was deemed too open with congress. After all, when mobster Sam Giancana was murdered before testifying, Colby went out of his way to say the CIA had nothing to do with it. (ibid, p. 155) Colby was later fired for being too forthcoming. Ford picked George Bush to replace him. And as further signal of his new "get tough" policy, Ford made a young Dick Cheney his Chief of Staff, and moved Donald Rumsfeld into the Pentagon.
With all these elements in place, Ford decided to use the 1975 murder of a CIA officer as a way to squelch and smear any further investigation. Richard Welch was the CIA station chief in Athens. The CIA and Ford blamed his death on the fact that his name had been exposed by an American journal called Counterspy. In fact, the leftist rebel group who killed him had issued a communiqué beforehand that revealed they knew his name then. (Schorr, p. 191) In a classic case of political propaganda, Ford and the CIA pulled out all the stops in using Welch's funeral as psychological warfare against the committees. Welch's body was flown into Andrews Air Force Base. But the plane circled the base for 15 minutes to time the landing for the morning news shows. (ibid) Ford attended the chapel service. But the press was barred in order to suggest that they were to blame for Welch's murder. Colby issued a statement saying that Welch's death was the result of a "paranoiac attack on ... Americans serving their country." David Phillips was interviewed by CBS and said, American agents are in less danger today from the KGB than from the "moral primitives" who "condemn my label". (ibid) Welch's body was buried at Arlington with full military honors. His coffin was carried on the same horse-drawn caisson that carried President Kennedy's. Colby gave the flag draped over it to Welch's widow. As Schorr wrote, "This is the CIA's first secret agent to become a pubic national hero." (ibid)
It worked. Henry Kissinger jumped on the committees: "I think they have used classified information in a reckless way ... " (ibid p. 194) Both committees closed up shop shortly after. Ford and the CIA held veto power over what could be published. When Otis Pike defied that agreement, Congress bottled up his report. A copy was smuggled to Daniel Schorr. As he was arranging to have it released, his boss, Bill Paley, lunched with Bush. (ibid, p. 201) The Pike Report was published in a special issue of The Village Voice. Forgetting his own use of classified material for his Oswald book, Ford now proposed an FBI investigation to find out who gave the report to Schorr. (ibid, p. 208) After Paley's meeting with Director Bush, Schorr was taken off the air by CBS. After a two hour impromptu interrogation during which he was not represented by counsel Schorr was fired by the network. He was later investigated by the House but refused to reveal his source for the report...
http://www.ctka.net/2008/bugliosi_8_review.html
William Colby stipulated to "foreign assassination plots"
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If you don't think we're already living in a police state, consider this. [View all]
99th_Monkey
Feb 2015
OP
14 Defining Characteristics of Fascism (http://www.rense.com/general37/char.htm)
blkmusclmachine
Feb 2015
#1
It is 14 out of 14, the first step is to define realized what religion is being intertwined
happyslug
Feb 2015
#160
But to this degree and such highly sophisticated organization against democracy for ALL?
lexington filly
Feb 2015
#79
At some point, the pendulum will begin to swing away from this practice toward equality for all.
Dont call me Shirley
Feb 2015
#3
I consider it the most sane of woowoo notion that at some point a critical mass of sanity triggers
Dont call me Shirley
Feb 2015
#13
i hope that eventually a switch will be thrown in the unconscious mind of everyone.
TimeToEvolve
Feb 2015
#60
Yes and I have been in the blackness of eternal night, and I made it through.
Dont call me Shirley
Feb 2015
#24
The phrase actually comes from Hermeticism - A swing to the right is a swing to the left
Hestia
Feb 2015
#138
Interesting, but the pendulum I referred to is meant to cut victims in half
HereSince1628
Feb 2015
#162
Yup! When I saw the beatdown of Occupy and the neo-military response to Furgoson
OffWithTheirHeads
Feb 2015
#14
Brightened my day! We still got Obama, the White House, all the good States, and all the good ideas.
Fred Sanders
Feb 2015
#30
oh pleeeez...you insult people being persecuted around the world by using this term for the USA.
uhnope
Feb 2015
#26
When younger, I would NEVER have believed the USA could EVER sink to 46th in press freedom
Faryn Balyncd
Feb 2015
#54
+10000 And..The United States has the largest prison population in the world,
woo me with science
Feb 2015
#100
"I mean some people who claim to be poor even have microwave ovens and TVs..." Fox News
whereisjustice
Feb 2015
#112
We lost this game a long time ago. The two minute warning was when we let the Supreme Court
world wide wally
Feb 2015
#40
I think your first paragraph could use more detail because as I read about the last 40 years being
Bluenorthwest
Feb 2015
#46
yes. The INCREASE in freedoms in the USA in last 40 years doesn't fit into the narrative
uhnope
Feb 2015
#52
I see. So there's a plan by the "The Oligarchs" to fool us by giving us some freedom
uhnope
Feb 2015
#59
You demean the years of struggle against your straight culture that produced the progress in
Bluenorthwest
Feb 2015
#91
I think the fact that you feel you can characterize me with impunity suggests a lack of equity in
Bluenorthwest
Feb 2015
#141
What specifically leads you to believe that gay rights was a "carrot" developed by oligarchs?
LanternWaste
Feb 2015
#144
and how does this supposed Police State USA compare to actual police states in...
uhnope
Feb 2015
#55
Asking questions in lieu of presenting an actual counter argument seems to indicate
rhett o rick
Feb 2015
#145
police reform is of the utmost importance IMO but reform is stalled by yahoos yelling "police state"
uhnope
Feb 2015
#147
OK, you may be conflating a number of issues, hyperbalizing things and calling up a mythical past.
pinto
Feb 2015
#68
The answer is two fold. "Can it be a true police state whil citizenry are armed?"
rhett o rick
Feb 2015
#146
Excellent post, the rich are funding a police state to stifle dissent as they steal
whereisjustice
Feb 2015
#115
The fact this post stays up, and DU actually exists, speaks against the idea of a police state.
Drunken Irishman
Feb 2015
#118
Armed officers appearing at people's residences over building code enforcement
aint_no_life_nowhere
Feb 2015
#119
A slowly boiled frog doesn't get it until he's dead, at which point, he's oblivious.
merrily
Feb 2015
#142
You might want to re-think your "investigative journalists" with the benefit of hindsight
Blue_Tires
Jan 2018
#169