What do you think?
Rate this book
While You Slept
While You Our tragedy in Asia and who made it (The Americanist library) (Paperback) by John T Flynn
158 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1951
107 people want to read
About the author
John T. Flynn
58 books21 followersAmerican journalist best known for his opposition to President Franklin D. Roosevelt and to American entry into World War II.
He started at the New Haven Register, but eventually moved to New York; there he was financial editor of the New York Globe. During the 1920s and 1930s, he wrote articles for such leading publications as The New Republic, Harper's Magazine, and Collier's Weekly. He became one of the best-known political commentators in the United States. Like Oswald Garrison Villard, another key figure in the Old Right, Flynn was a leftist with populist inclinations during this period. He supported Franklin D. Roosevelt for president but criticized the New Deal. In 1939, he predicted that Social Security would be under water by 1970, and insolvent by 1980.
During the Cold War period, Flynn continued his opposition to interventionist foreign policies and militarism. An early critic of American involvement in the affairs of Indochina, he maintained that sending US troops would "only be proving the case of the Communists against America that we are defending French imperialism."
Flynn became an early and avid supporter of Senator Joseph McCarthy. This was in part because Flynn (even in his early left-wing views) had always been firmly anticommunist and in part because McCarthy shared Flynn's dislike for the Washington/New York establishment.
In 1955, Flynn had a formal falling-out with the new generation of Cold War conservatives when William F. Buckley, Jr., rejected one of his articles for the new National Review. This submission had attacked militarism as a "job-making boondoggle." Flynn retired from public life in 1960.
He started at the New Haven Register, but eventually moved to New York; there he was financial editor of the New York Globe. During the 1920s and 1930s, he wrote articles for such leading publications as The New Republic, Harper's Magazine, and Collier's Weekly. He became one of the best-known political commentators in the United States. Like Oswald Garrison Villard, another key figure in the Old Right, Flynn was a leftist with populist inclinations during this period. He supported Franklin D. Roosevelt for president but criticized the New Deal. In 1939, he predicted that Social Security would be under water by 1970, and insolvent by 1980.
During the Cold War period, Flynn continued his opposition to interventionist foreign policies and militarism. An early critic of American involvement in the affairs of Indochina, he maintained that sending US troops would "only be proving the case of the Communists against America that we are defending French imperialism."
Flynn became an early and avid supporter of Senator Joseph McCarthy. This was in part because Flynn (even in his early left-wing views) had always been firmly anticommunist and in part because McCarthy shared Flynn's dislike for the Washington/New York establishment.
In 1955, Flynn had a formal falling-out with the new generation of Cold War conservatives when William F. Buckley, Jr., rejected one of his articles for the new National Review. This submission had attacked militarism as a "job-making boondoggle." Flynn retired from public life in 1960.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
gone-gave-away
March 23, 2024Our Tragedy in Asia and Who Made It.
I read his Roosevelt Myth. Right Winger, sensible.
Written in the late fifties, this book outlines how America turned its back on the Nationalist Chinese during World War II and ushered in communism in China. He names the names of the dupes, dopes, do-gooders, and traitors. Well documented and well written. I have read similar stories of the China debacle that haunts us to this day. This one is the best.
..
John T. Flynn was a tireless slayer of sacred cows, and one of the central figures of the anti-Rooseveltian, anti-New Deal coalition now remembered (by some) as the Old Right. This book deals largely with the question of Communist domination of Asia, in particular China and Korea. But most of the attention is focused in the U.S., and particularly upon the men -- some dupes, some Comsymps (ah, for the good old days of Red-baiting language), and a few dedicated Soviet agents -- in Washington and elsewhere who made that domination possible.
A key part of Flynn's thesis is that the print, film, and radio media were deliberately employed to soften Americans' natural opposition to Communist totalitarianism, and to prepare them for the idea of Soviet "partnership" in the post-World War II era. A large section of the book is filled with examples of pro-Communist propaganda in all three media, and the silencing (contra the "McCarthyism" myth) of critics of the Russian or Chinese Communists. In partnership with the pro-Communist agitprop (another nearly forgotten term!) were the missteps and blunders committed by political leaders, particularly FDR, Marshall, and Acheson. Truman, too, receives his fair share of blame. But as Flynn notes, most of the seeds of "our tragedy in Asia" were planted during the FDR years.
Does any of this matter any more? Flynn's lessons about the propagandistic power of the media are certainly still relevant and worthy of deep study. And though the guns are silent, China and Korea are certainly still in the headlines. Unraveling the mythology of the rise of Communism in Asia is essential for grappling with the situation there today. Perhaps most important of all is taking the time yet again to knock the pins out from under the vastly inflated reputations of FDR and Truman. Few men have ever performed that valuable service better than John T. Flynn. He deserves to be remembered, and read, with our thanks.
Devin Adair HB 1951. Keeper.
I read his Roosevelt Myth. Right Winger, sensible.
Written in the late fifties, this book outlines how America turned its back on the Nationalist Chinese during World War II and ushered in communism in China. He names the names of the dupes, dopes, do-gooders, and traitors. Well documented and well written. I have read similar stories of the China debacle that haunts us to this day. This one is the best.
..
John T. Flynn was a tireless slayer of sacred cows, and one of the central figures of the anti-Rooseveltian, anti-New Deal coalition now remembered (by some) as the Old Right. This book deals largely with the question of Communist domination of Asia, in particular China and Korea. But most of the attention is focused in the U.S., and particularly upon the men -- some dupes, some Comsymps (ah, for the good old days of Red-baiting language), and a few dedicated Soviet agents -- in Washington and elsewhere who made that domination possible.
A key part of Flynn's thesis is that the print, film, and radio media were deliberately employed to soften Americans' natural opposition to Communist totalitarianism, and to prepare them for the idea of Soviet "partnership" in the post-World War II era. A large section of the book is filled with examples of pro-Communist propaganda in all three media, and the silencing (contra the "McCarthyism" myth) of critics of the Russian or Chinese Communists. In partnership with the pro-Communist agitprop (another nearly forgotten term!) were the missteps and blunders committed by political leaders, particularly FDR, Marshall, and Acheson. Truman, too, receives his fair share of blame. But as Flynn notes, most of the seeds of "our tragedy in Asia" were planted during the FDR years.
Does any of this matter any more? Flynn's lessons about the propagandistic power of the media are certainly still relevant and worthy of deep study. And though the guns are silent, China and Korea are certainly still in the headlines. Unraveling the mythology of the rise of Communism in Asia is essential for grappling with the situation there today. Perhaps most important of all is taking the time yet again to knock the pins out from under the vastly inflated reputations of FDR and Truman. Few men have ever performed that valuable service better than John T. Flynn. He deserves to be remembered, and read, with our thanks.
Devin Adair HB 1951. Keeper.
April 13, 2024
DID THE GOVERNMENT (AND OTHERS) MANIPULATE U.S. PUBLIC OPINION?
John Thomas Flynn (1882-1964) was an American journalist who helped establish the America First Committee (AFC) which he abandoned when Pearl Harbor was attacked. (He also argued that Roosevelt and his inner circle plotted to provoke the Japanese into an attack on the U.S.)
He wrote in the first chapter of this 1951 book, “The purpose of this book is not to record a history of the [Korean] war. Its aim is to discover how our great, free nation, guarded against such a disaster by a Constitution and a long heritage of ideals, could be brought into such a struggle, involving objectives so dimly seen, stretching on to a problems so insoluble, and promising stresses on our economic and political system that might well end in its utter identity. Consider what has happened. The President… plunged us … into a distant Oriental war in pursuit of ends no one understands and involving costs and consequences we cannot measure… Before this was possible, something, over a course of years, had to be done to the minds of the American people. The purpose of this book is to explore the techniques by which this job was done and to identify, if possible, the agencies and the men responsible for it… It is difficult for the American to realize that the ideas, the prejudices, and convictions he holds may have been deliberately… planted in his mind by men who have a settled purpose in performing that operation… When we had ended our great war, we found among the prizes of victory disasters we had not bargained for. It is the purpose of this book to attempt to describe how these disasters were planned---WHILE WE SLEPT.”
Later, he adds, “How could President Roosevelt and later [Dean] Acheson and [General George] Marshall perform this appalling operation without a protest from the American people? The answer … is that the American people had to be drugged---drugged by propaganda. They had to be lied to. How would it be possible for President Roosevelt to collaborate in delivering … [Eastern] Europe and all of China and part of Korea in Asia to Moscow, only six years before reviled as the enemy of mankind, unless the American people could be induced to close their eyes to the monstrous performance? Their thinking had to be shaped in order to create in their minds images… that were not true. This could not be done by the government alone. It had to find other partners and instruments in the odious enterprise. The chief aim of this book is to describe this strange experiment in mind control.” (Pg. 45)
He asserts, “As 1943 dawned… Roosevelt… had not the slightest doubt he could soften Stalin down and induce him to join a great institution of world government of which he, Roosevelt, would be the head---President of the World. This was Roosevelt’s great and fatal design… But Stalin too had a Grand Design… he would use his war-created power to crush the two enemies he feared… Germany and Japan… Second, Russia was determined to bring under her wing… all of the countries of Eastern Europe… The whole mistake of our leaders was their failure to recognize that Russia was a continues to be at war with us here and in the world… unless we throw away .. all the childish superstitions our government nourished about Russia and begin to recognize her as an enemy, Stalin will accomplish every one of his objectives.” (Pg. 26-29)
He says, “The American people had to be … convinced… that Stalin was not really a ruthless dictator… [This]cold be done only by a massive and sustained propaganda offensive… upon the minds of the people… Who shaped, managed and directed this propaganda? The government… How this was done is a subject which might well fill a volume… However it was done, we now know that IT WAS DONE… I know it is difficult for the American to believe that this job was done in this way… I propose to supply the proof here that it was done… this extraordinary sale of a monstrous collection of lies about communism, Russia and China.” (Pg. 56-58)
He reports, “I have listed 29 books that dealt with China and its troubles. Twenty-two of these books were pro-Chinese Communist. Seven were anti-Communist…. Every one of the 22 pro-Communist books… received glowing approval in the literary reviews… And every one of the anti-Communist books was either roundly condemned or ignored in these same reviews.” (Pg. 73)
He argues, “The Communists literally ran wild in Hollywood. That story is too long to tell here. But now we know that they were not only writing a large number of screen plays but were able successfully to drive anti-Communist actors, directors, and producers out of Hollywood… What about the men who owned the moving-picture-producing companies… Were they in on this? I am quite sure they were not. They were just as stupid as the rest of us.” (Pg. 101)
He summarizes, “Never in history has a nation off free people had brought to bear upon its mind so vast of propaganda so powerful as those which shaped the opinions of Americans toward supporting the program that has ended by delivering almost all of Europe and Asia into the hands of Russian communism.” (Pg. 115) Later, he adds, “The trick lies in getting into positions where information can be controlled, where policies can be formed---getting into the strategic spots where the switches which govern information, opinion and policy can be controlled.” (Pg. 142)
He asserts, “The simple truth… is that there is a highly developed, comprehensive and intricate political technology which has been developed by the Communist technicians for dealing with political pressures of every description… There are men in this country who know of this dark art. They attempted to put up the warning signals during the war and after. But they were silenced with the cry of ‘Fascist.’” (Pg. 177)
He concludes, “There were traitors in the State Department and in posts of power in many departments of the government. Many of the men who are now being hustled off to jail were exercising a controlling influence at those key positions were decisions are made… by the most gigantic propaganda assault in history, they set out to fool the American people about the war and its purposes. The result is that the war is not yet over for us… The enemy is communism. Stalin is merely its high priest and Russia is merely its GHQ… the Communist generals know that there is only one stronghold to be stormed and taken. That is the United States of America.” (Pg. 185-186)
Written at the beginning of the McCarthy era, Flynn’s account of government propaganda, public manipulation, etc., will appeal to some.
John Thomas Flynn (1882-1964) was an American journalist who helped establish the America First Committee (AFC) which he abandoned when Pearl Harbor was attacked. (He also argued that Roosevelt and his inner circle plotted to provoke the Japanese into an attack on the U.S.)
He wrote in the first chapter of this 1951 book, “The purpose of this book is not to record a history of the [Korean] war. Its aim is to discover how our great, free nation, guarded against such a disaster by a Constitution and a long heritage of ideals, could be brought into such a struggle, involving objectives so dimly seen, stretching on to a problems so insoluble, and promising stresses on our economic and political system that might well end in its utter identity. Consider what has happened. The President… plunged us … into a distant Oriental war in pursuit of ends no one understands and involving costs and consequences we cannot measure… Before this was possible, something, over a course of years, had to be done to the minds of the American people. The purpose of this book is to explore the techniques by which this job was done and to identify, if possible, the agencies and the men responsible for it… It is difficult for the American to realize that the ideas, the prejudices, and convictions he holds may have been deliberately… planted in his mind by men who have a settled purpose in performing that operation… When we had ended our great war, we found among the prizes of victory disasters we had not bargained for. It is the purpose of this book to attempt to describe how these disasters were planned---WHILE WE SLEPT.”
Later, he adds, “How could President Roosevelt and later [Dean] Acheson and [General George] Marshall perform this appalling operation without a protest from the American people? The answer … is that the American people had to be drugged---drugged by propaganda. They had to be lied to. How would it be possible for President Roosevelt to collaborate in delivering … [Eastern] Europe and all of China and part of Korea in Asia to Moscow, only six years before reviled as the enemy of mankind, unless the American people could be induced to close their eyes to the monstrous performance? Their thinking had to be shaped in order to create in their minds images… that were not true. This could not be done by the government alone. It had to find other partners and instruments in the odious enterprise. The chief aim of this book is to describe this strange experiment in mind control.” (Pg. 45)
He asserts, “As 1943 dawned… Roosevelt… had not the slightest doubt he could soften Stalin down and induce him to join a great institution of world government of which he, Roosevelt, would be the head---President of the World. This was Roosevelt’s great and fatal design… But Stalin too had a Grand Design… he would use his war-created power to crush the two enemies he feared… Germany and Japan… Second, Russia was determined to bring under her wing… all of the countries of Eastern Europe… The whole mistake of our leaders was their failure to recognize that Russia was a continues to be at war with us here and in the world… unless we throw away .. all the childish superstitions our government nourished about Russia and begin to recognize her as an enemy, Stalin will accomplish every one of his objectives.” (Pg. 26-29)
He says, “The American people had to be … convinced… that Stalin was not really a ruthless dictator… [This]cold be done only by a massive and sustained propaganda offensive… upon the minds of the people… Who shaped, managed and directed this propaganda? The government… How this was done is a subject which might well fill a volume… However it was done, we now know that IT WAS DONE… I know it is difficult for the American to believe that this job was done in this way… I propose to supply the proof here that it was done… this extraordinary sale of a monstrous collection of lies about communism, Russia and China.” (Pg. 56-58)
He reports, “I have listed 29 books that dealt with China and its troubles. Twenty-two of these books were pro-Chinese Communist. Seven were anti-Communist…. Every one of the 22 pro-Communist books… received glowing approval in the literary reviews… And every one of the anti-Communist books was either roundly condemned or ignored in these same reviews.” (Pg. 73)
He argues, “The Communists literally ran wild in Hollywood. That story is too long to tell here. But now we know that they were not only writing a large number of screen plays but were able successfully to drive anti-Communist actors, directors, and producers out of Hollywood… What about the men who owned the moving-picture-producing companies… Were they in on this? I am quite sure they were not. They were just as stupid as the rest of us.” (Pg. 101)
He summarizes, “Never in history has a nation off free people had brought to bear upon its mind so vast of propaganda so powerful as those which shaped the opinions of Americans toward supporting the program that has ended by delivering almost all of Europe and Asia into the hands of Russian communism.” (Pg. 115) Later, he adds, “The trick lies in getting into positions where information can be controlled, where policies can be formed---getting into the strategic spots where the switches which govern information, opinion and policy can be controlled.” (Pg. 142)
He asserts, “The simple truth… is that there is a highly developed, comprehensive and intricate political technology which has been developed by the Communist technicians for dealing with political pressures of every description… There are men in this country who know of this dark art. They attempted to put up the warning signals during the war and after. But they were silenced with the cry of ‘Fascist.’” (Pg. 177)
He concludes, “There were traitors in the State Department and in posts of power in many departments of the government. Many of the men who are now being hustled off to jail were exercising a controlling influence at those key positions were decisions are made… by the most gigantic propaganda assault in history, they set out to fool the American people about the war and its purposes. The result is that the war is not yet over for us… The enemy is communism. Stalin is merely its high priest and Russia is merely its GHQ… the Communist generals know that there is only one stronghold to be stormed and taken. That is the United States of America.” (Pg. 185-186)
Written at the beginning of the McCarthy era, Flynn’s account of government propaganda, public manipulation, etc., will appeal to some.
April 21, 2011
Available for free download as a PDF file from the Ludwig von Mises Institute.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews