Pickleloaf.com : Books : The Rosenberg File: Second Edition


Books : The Rosenberg File: Second Edition In association with Amazon.com Rating: - Dus Vedanya Tovarishch The Rosenberg File (2nd edition) by Ronald Radosh and Joyce Milton is a gargantuan piece of superb literary research. The authors take the reader into the dark world of Soviet espionage within the latter part of the decade preceding the war, during the war, and shorlty thereafter. The ideological sympathies portrayed by many Americans towards Soviet Russia during this time period is no secret, but many took their ideals and sympathies too far! The Rosenbergs, and their accomplices were prime examples of those individuals. The book reads like an ongoing novel, but...this novel is true. The authors do a magnificent job in laying out each "player" in this "Great Amercian Tragedy." The reader is allowed a glimpse into the formative years of each personality which ultimately enhances the events and story line as it starts to unravel. The crumbling "house of cards" follows the arrest and incarceration of Dr. Klaus Fuchs (who should have been extradited from England and stood trial along with the Rosenbergs!) The authors present enough recent information (i.e.; FBI files, Venona Intercepts, KGB archives, and publications) to confirm (without a doubt), that Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were guilty as charged. The court room testimony, and drama revealed in the book is as unique, and moving as anything one could ever find within the Nuremberg trials. The only criticism I would mention is that a book of this size (616 pages including notes and index section) should have had numerous photo plates. In addition, a little more information (if there is any) on Ruth Greenglass would have been appreciated. After all, a woman with the code name of "OSA" (Wasp) deserves a little more study and explanation. Did her Soviet handlers know her better than her husband? The Rosenberg File (second edition) is actually a "6-Star" book with a 5 star rating. Rating: - SOLDIERS OF THE REVOLUTION Eisenhower, Stalin, the Cold War, the Korean War, atomic bombs, atomic spies, air raid shelters, the "Red Scare", McCarthyism and the Rosenbergs- in the mist of time these were early, if undigested terms, from my childhood. Ah, the Rosenbergs. That is what I want to write about today. Out of all of those undigested terms that name is the one that still evokes deep emotion in these old bones. For those who have forgotten or those too young to remember the controversy surrounding their convictions for espionage in passing information about the atomic bomb to the now defunct Soviet Union and their executions defined an essential part of the 1950's, the formation of the Cold War period in American history. Their controversial convictions and sentencing evoked widespread protests throughout the world. Thus, those who seek to learn the lessons of history, and about justice American-style should take the time to carefully examine the case and come to some conclusions about it. Frankly, I have not, until recently when I read the updated The Rosenberg File by Ronald Radosh and Joyce Milton (written originally in 1983), read any new books on the case so that one of my tasks was to re-read the old material, read the new post-Soviet material, and make some suggestions about what to look for in trying to understand its history. This book, for friend or foe of the memory of the Rosenbergs, is a good place to start. And what is the scholarship on the case? Was their trial a frame-up in classic American-style against leftist political opponents of the Cold War and American foreign policy? Were they, individually or collectively, "master spies" at the service of the Soviet Union? Were they innocent, if misguided, progressives caught up in the turmoil of the American "red scare" of the post-World War II period? Did the government through its FBI and other security agencies, its attorneys, its judges stumble into a case which would make many reputations? Did the American Communist Party, itself under severe scrutiny, betray the Rosenbergs? Did the various international campaigns on behalf of the couple work at cross purposes with their various demands for a new trial, reduction of sentence and clemency? What kind of people were these Rosenbergs? In short, were the Rosenbergs heroic Soviet spies, martyrs, dupes or innocents? Those are the questions thoughtful readers are confronted with and are fully examined in this book. Let me add that very few people are neutral on the question of the Rosenbergs, and give the nature of the case no one should be. The authors here are convinced of their guilt in the legal sense and that seems to be good enough for them, although they have some issues about the propriety of the executions. My take on the meaning of the case is different which reflects a different political perspective from the authors. As the title of this piece indicates they stood up for the cause they believed in, the defense of the Soviet Union, and they did not flinch when the consequences of their actions required they pay the highest price. Whether you agree or not, if the reader is merely interested in the spy thriller "who dunnit" aspect of the case and getting the 'bad guys' rather than a thorough review of the case and its political ramifications perhaps one should look elsewhere. Rating: - Real History When Ronald Radosh and Joyce Milton began the research for this book, many people across the political spectrum became uncomfortable. That is because this is an actual work of history, rather than an ideological screed masquerading as history. Radosh and Milton have been faithful to the historian's profession: they have interviewed, they have researched, and they have made an honest, ethical attempt to answer the crucial historical question: "What really happened?" Ideologues on the left and the right have feared and criticized this book because it does a thorough job of lifting the fog of ideology and shedding light on events. What really happened to the Rosenbergs? The revelations are shocking, debunking years of mythology that, even now, continues to be taught in public schools by overindoctrinated teachers. Julius was, indeed, a spy for the USSR, and his wife was fully supportive of his activities, a minor accomplice. They did indeed pass on crude atomic information to the USSR. The USSR would have built an atomic bomb by 1950 at the latest even without the Rosenberg's information. A New York judge used the Rosenbergs to further his career and imposed an unrealistically harsh sentence. President Eisenhower approved of the Rosenberg execution as a warning to anyone else who would spy on the USA. Most of the Rosenberg's most vocal defenders were well aware of their guilt, even as they proclaimed their innocence. Finally, the Rosenbergs could have saved themselves, but chose to put their politics above their children. These revelations will continually be tested and challenged. Nevertheless, it is unlikely that they will be overturned any time soon. Radosh and Milton have amassed an awesome array of primary and secondary source evidence supporting their conclusions, including interviews of surviving witnesses, court documents, and a review of the scientific evidence -- with only passing reference to the formidable Venona decrypts, which fully corroborate their conclusions. This book is highly recommended for an understanding of the Cold War era. Rating: - Stop apologizing, start reading The Rosenberg case has faded with time and turned into a diffuse urban legend. Facts are rarely possessed by those who are most vehement about the case. This book puts an end to the hodge-podge of information that led some people to believe the Rosenbergs were innocents framed by the government. The truth is that they were spies, they were communists, and they engaged in treason. The Soviets would have acquired The Bomb with or without the Rosenbergs. That doesn't mitigate their guilt for hastening the information to our enemy. The Rosenbergs weren't tried for what they believed. They were tried for what they did. And they were killed for what they did not do--which was recant. Sworn communists, they chose death instead of life. A selfish, stupid choice that placed a worthless ideology over the needs of their two young children, who have written worthwhile books about growing up as orphans of two of the most infamous American traitors. This book ends the speculation that they were innocent, that they had no chance to save their lives by recanting. Here are the latest facts and the fullest account of a chapter in American history that continues to be a vital flashpoint for people on either side of the political spectrum. Rating: - Read both this book and The Brother by Sam Roberts The Radosh book concerning the Rosenberg case is a much fuller and more comprehensive treatment of the case than is the more recent book, The Brother, by Sam Roberts. The Brother is based on the current recollections of Ethel Rosenberg's brother David Greenglass who fingered both Ethel and Julius in testimony. David also served a number of years for espionage, himself, as part of same case. The review by a recent reviewer which states that The Rosenberg File clears Juius and Ethel apparently has not read this book which makes it very, very clear that Julius was certainly part of a communist espionage ring in the NY City area for years during WWII. The Venona Files also make the same case. It is Ethel who was probably not actually guilty of active espionage activities. It should be said, also, that both Rosenbergs could have saved themselves by telling the truth. Ethel might well not even have been charged, and Julius would almost certainly not have gotten the chair. But, they chose to lie right up to the end and be martyrs for the communist cause. The Radosh book, strongly documents the case against Julius and is also forthright about the weakness of the case against Ethel. Read both The Rosenberg File for completeness and The Brother by Sam Roberts for a facinating sidelight from the point of view of one of the central characters in the story.