Jack Webb"s "-30-"

Jack Webb's 1959 film -30- is a compelling movie, even at times when you would rather not be compelled. It's It's both highly engaging and one of the best portraits of a big city paper I've ever seen on the screen (with all due respect to Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur). -30- is, of course, the designation  traditionally used by  reporters to indicate the end of their articles.  The film's flaws are obvious, such as the classic trope of every crisis, both public and private, occurring on one night in the newsroom, and all of them resolved by dawn. But the film looks great, with rain constantly beating on the windows, and tired middle-aged copy editors and coffee grinds everywhere.  Webb, most famous as Joe Friday in Dragnet, directed the film, as well as playing the paper's managing editor, Sam Gatlin, a man struggling with personal demons as he attempts to cover a major story.  Webb gives what is arguably his best performance in a feature film. Hard-boiled but with a heart of gold and all that.

Some critics asserted at the time that the portrait of the newspaper was wildly unrealistic. Having not been on a newspaper in the 1950s, I really can't judge. But the movie is fun.

The Fire This Time, Part 2

The protesters in Seattle's "Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone" (CHAZ)* might want to read George Orwell's masterpiece about the Spanish Civil War, "Homage to Catalonia," to learn what happened to the anarchists who took over the town of Barcelona.  Or read about the members of the French Commune in 1870. Or the Bolshevik creators of the Munich commune in the aftermath of the First World War. It didn't end well for them.  Given the choice between anarchy and order, most citizens opt for order.  And the worse the anarchy is, the more brutal the strongman who restores that order. Witness Napoleon after the chaos of the French Revolution.

Orwell admitted that he was at first exultant over the anarchists in Barcelona eliminating money, private property, and all class distinctions, with people from all different backgrounds serving as waiters and sanitation workers. But his enthusiasm quickly dissipated when he saw how the anarchists were being executed by their ostensible allies, the Soviet-backed militias who took over the Republican cause. Orwell never fully got over his disillusionment from the Spanish Civil War, and his bitterness led to the writing of Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-four.  The protesters who are now pulling down monuments and attempting to eliminate history may well have been inspired by the bureaucrats of Orwell's Ministry of Truth in the latter novel. More likely they have not read the book and are simply following the natural pattern of all totalitarians who disguise themselves as liberators.

* Now renamed "Capitol Hill Organized Protest" (CHOP) 6/25/2020

David Ryder / Getty Images

The Fire This Time

Photo: Stephanie Keith / Getty Images

The protests and riots going on across the country, including my own hometown of New York City, are not about outrage over the death of George Floyd, or indignation over the way African-Americans are treated by the police.  If you look at the crowds, they're largely young and white.  These kids are pissed off because they've been forced to wear masks and stay indoors for months while their educations and careers have been on hold indefinitely. Their one hope was getting a "progressive" like Bernie or Liz nominated by the Democratic Party, and instead they're stuck with old, white, fumbling, bumbling Joe Biden to lead them to a Pyrrhic victory, if that.  No wonder they're filled with rage and frustration. 

Add to this toxic mix the Antifa agitators, one of those groups whose name ("anti-fascist") is the direct opposite of the activities they regularly engage in.  They come equipped with all the latest riot gear (gear designed to start riots, that is, not stop them), and go to the kids on while they disappear into the crowd and the night.  Now instead of sitting at home feeling hopeless and useless, the kids get to feel like social justice warriors, fighting the good fight, while some among them carry TVs and stereo equipment out of Targets before torching the building.  Now that's sending America a message.

Meanwhile the media tells us to understand them. I'm doing my best to understand, but as someone once said, to understand all is not to forgive all. It would have been interesting to see the mob successfully storm the CNN building as they attempted to earlier tonight. It might have been improved CNN's ratings if the kids took control of the cameras.  

This is a case where the lunatics are not only running the asylum but have already burned down the asylum.  Cheer them on if you wish, but remember that your home or business may be the Fire Next Time.