Chapter 15 Turn right - 1

Nixon: Wouldn't it be better to talk about the advantages of our washing machines than the power of our rockets? Isn't that what you want? Khrushchev: (puts his thumb on Nixon's chest): Yeah, that's the kind of competition we want, but your generals say they're powerful enough to destroy us.We can also show you something to show you the spirit of the Russians.We are strong and we can defeat you.In that regard, we can also give you something to look at. turn right Something was going downhill anyway, no doubt; if not the state's welfare, then its morals, its self-respect.Since the beginning of the Korean War, cartoonists in communist countries have been portraying Uncle Sam as a cold-eyed, spiteful old man, and judging by the accumulative headlines, they have good reason.Not only in political life but also in private life, Americans in high positions have turned out to be thieves, and worse than thieves, in a dismaying and shocking number.The crimes of those criminals who work for the federal government seem particularly heinous.Those bad guys are called "official sellers" and "kickbackers", and they are responsible for "the mess in Washington".This problem presents a serious obstacle to the Democrats continuing their 20-year power for another four years.

That's exactly what Republicans want.All insinuations led to the door of the White House, and by the spring of 1952 it was even possible to reason that the government was responsible for most of the corruption in the country anyway.Of course, no Republican leader has yet suggested that Harry Truman had dirty hands, and it just so happens that the first famous villain of the 1950s—the first star of television—never served as a government official.Still, he had contributed to Democratic campaigns and was a figure in New York politics, and that was enough to attract the attention of an ambitious Tennessee senator investigating crimes nationwide.

Frank Costello, alias Francisco Casteglia, alias Frank Sefrio, was a well-known figure of his day, an "organizer" in the organized crime industry who fit perfectly into a The impersonal person of the standards and requirements of a large corporate organization. — translator.He was only arrested once, long ago, for assault and robbery.Since then, he has been taken care of by others.He rose through the ranks of his trade, starting as a lowly thug, a bootlegger, and managing the slot machine, a kind of gaming machine in a teahouse restaurant, where nickels were thrown in and the wheels were turned, and occasional nickels were spit out. —translator, opened a casino, and ended up as a friend and backstage boss of a New York politician.By then, he was trying to hide his past.He invested in real estate and oil fields and assured journalists that, whatever his past, he was a legitimate businessman.But he is no legitimate businessman.He used to be Lucky Luciano's main assistant. When Lucky was deported, Costello took over his power and became the No. 1 tycoon.His connections with the underworld crisscross the country.Tammany's Carmine de Sapio was all grown by Costello, and so, some say, by New York City Mayor William O'Dwyer.

If Estes Kefelville's Senate hearings into organized crime had gone national in the late 1940s or mid-1950s, they would have received minimal attention because there hadn't been enough established Television stations, and in the latter stage due to the broadcasting company's programs have filled the daytime broadcasting time of television stations.But the committee held its hearing in May 1950.Because there is no better program to broadcast, some TV station directors in other cities broadcast the hearing as a kind of social service.When the investigating senators hit the courthouse in New York's Foley Square on March 12, 1951, the WPIX television cameramen were ready to follow suit.Things are a little different here.In New York, there are particularly many people who have TV sets, and a large-scale audience network has been formed.Here in the capital of the broadcasting industry, the equipment for rebroadcasting to various places has long been developed.

Costello's attorney, who wanted to avoid being seen on television, asked that cameras not be directed at his client."Mr. Costello doesn't like to be the subject of the public eye," he explained. The senators agreed, but a technician subtly suggested that they all focus on Costello's hands.The result is excellent drama: tense dialogue on the mic, clenched fists on camera, fingers jittering on the tabletop, waving gestures with papers and glasses in hand, trembling hands Sheets of paper torn into shreds.Yes, Costello admitted, he has "a little cash" in a "little safe" at home.No, he couldn't remember how much that sum was.Hearing Senator Charles Toby threaten to search his home, the gangster suddenly remembered that he had $50,000 at home.How did he get that money? He murmured softly that he had friends who were rich.A golfing friend who manages the Roosevelt Racetrack admitted to giving Costello 15,000 yuan a year for four consecutive years, asking him to help prevent the New York State Racing Commission from revoking the horse racing license because of the lottery there. .Rudolph Haley, counsel for the Senate investigative committee, asked Costello if it was true.Not at all, said Costello, clenching his fists; that was a bit of a misunderstanding, he was just "spreading around" that his friend was a "good guy" and he couldn't be sorry.

Costello's hands began to sweat.He had run out of patience.He asked aggrievedly, should such a hard-working businessman be treated? He felt a sore throat.The strong light from the TV irritated him.He wants to go home.Kefwell bluntly told him to continue answering questions, but Costolo shook his head, and went on: Kefwell: Are you refusing to testify further...   COSTELLO: Senator, my first consideration is my health.If I testify, I'm going to tell the truth, but I'm out of my mind. Kefwell: It seems that your brain is still very good. COSTELLO: With all due respect to the senators ... I have a lot of respect for them, but I'm not going to take another question, I'm going to step back.

Then, he really left.He spent 18 months in the Lewisburg federal prison for contempt of court.Thirty million television viewers saw his exit.According to statistics from the TV Statistical Institute, nearly 70% of New York TVs watched the hearing held by Kefelville.The audience was twice as large as the audience of the World Baseball League last fall. After eight days in Frye Square, the Kefelville Committee returned to Washington.The chairman of the committee is now a candidate for president, and 30 million families are left with a clear impression of what kind of corruption is happening in American cities.Ed Murrow said: "Television shows have always been fascinating, with surprisingly large audiences—perhaps due to the fact that the villains who appear on television are real people." Young-Rubicon advertising agency summed up the general impression, Place an ad in a New York newspaper, deploring the evils of society and asking, "Is there anything we can do about it?"

One thing to do: Teach children how to tell right from wrong.Presumably that had been done, but while the Kefelville Committee was still in session, the papers presented conclusive evidence of malpractice where it least aroused suspicion—among university youths.The CUNY basketball team has played for several winters with one of the best basketball teams in the country.It has now been discovered that three of its five regular players took bribes -- as much as $1,500 each -- to deliberately lose games at Madison Square Garden.They were just indicted, and basketball players from NYU, Toledo, Bradley and Kentucky signed similar affidavits.

The abettors in the sports world, one named Salvador Solezzo, received eight years in prison, and the others received shorter terms.It's convenient to use Solezzo as a scapegoat.As long as the sports season is exciting that fall, the stain on the college's reputation will be quickly forgotten.Unfortunately another scandal arose that August.West Point announced that 90 cadets had been expelled for cheating on exams. Cheating in basketball games and exams is typical.America was going through one of its periodic moral lapses, the first since the 1920s.And, as is often the case in such immoral ages, the sin is more tolerant, though they refuse to admit it.To understand the problems that were going on at that time requires a deep understanding of the meaning between the lines.Talking is rarely straightforward.Reports of scandalous things in the newspapers are glossed over with euphemisms.Typical examples: calling prostitutes "call girls" or "pickup girls" and sometimes "playgirls".Sleeping with a guy, they always talk about "pick up" ("What did you do after picking up John?" "I'm going to the bathroom to get a towel").The cumulative effect is to make the oldest profession sound trendy.

The fur and jeweled prostitutes of the 1950s were very different from the "wild girls" of the early 1930s who sowed dime-at-a-time dimes along railroad lines, or six dimes a dime during World War II Two-fifth small coin. - Translator's "Victory Lady".Call girls are no longer soliciting customers on the street or at the bus station. They operate in high-end hotel rooms and make appointments by phone, just like doctors.Many are beauty campaign winners and/or college graduates.Some majored in economics, and in court they saw themselves almost as generous contributors to the gross national product.In fact, the services they provide have indeed played a certain role in business.Many manufacturers took it for granted to supply girls from out of town, pimped by their increasingly active advertising departments.Accounting has to figure out a way to make that expense deductible on the income tax return.Only women with such a reputation for discretion are recruited for this kind of work.But the treatment is very high, up to 500 yuan once.A sarcastic bawdy marked them in her roster as "VIP," which literally means "very important person." - the translator's mark - stands for "first class".

In a sense, this is the right thing to do.Trouble caused by non-professional prostitutes is dangerous for senior hospitality staff and executive deputy general managers.The origins of the women casually picked up under street lights or at crowded cocktail parties are unknown.She might be sick, or a detective at a competing manufacturer, or the wife of a blackmailing husband.She may come to your office or even your home a month later, turning a casual encounter into a long-term concubine.All cash transactions ruled out those possibilities.Just play it, don't be sloppy.The more famous a person is, the more likely he is to seek out an open professional prostitute.A small actor who plays a ranch hand for a big star can find a reluctant waitress, but the big star himself needs a professional whore.This is the case with all important people whose careers require frequent travel, including nationally famous politicians.At the time, voters didn't know it was happening.It's not that they have any illusions about people in positions of power, not at all.They just think that politicians are too busy to steal the country's wealth. Major General Harry Vaughan was a tall, genial Missourian, a little like Hermann Göring, with a poker genius.In other respects he had no notable talent, nor was he particularly shrewd.As Harry Truman's aide-de-camp, he should have known he would be in the spotlight a lot, but he was still one of the most scruffy generals in service.He either forgot to wear his uniform shirt or tie on important occasions and has been doing behind-the-scenes deals.Of course, there is nothing shady about it, it's just that the hands and feet are a little dirty.For example, in his first speech after Truman's ascension to the presidency in 1945, Vaughan spoke to the Women's Auxiliary of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Alexandria about the black market in occupied Germany The price is very high. In order to give an example to illustrate, he revealed that he once sold an American watch he bought for 55 yuan to a Russian officer for 500 yuan.