Ellis Wyatt, 1000% correct

Ellis Wyatt said:

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McCarthy was right.

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Relative to the historical narrative widely propagated in 2026, sure. In the context of the time however it was still a self-aggrandizing witch hunt carried out by a loathsome individual.

It's actually a good case study in how going too far with caricatures and demonization can actually make a terrible person a more sympathetic figure than they have any right to be.

94chem said:

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Ellis Wyatt said:

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McCarthy was right.

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Can you expound a bit?

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McCarthy's core premise, that communists had thoroughly infiltrated American politics, academics and entertainment, had more truth to it than the historical narrative formed in the decades since would have you believe. It was a very real problem. That being said many of his specific allegations against individuals and groups were exaggerated or outright fabricated, and it's abundantly clear the entire exercise was largely for the personal gain of a raging alcoholic and narcissist. It's also pretty clear from the historical record that however right he was it was largely due to dumb luck, as many of the biggest examples of his claims were entirely unknowable at the time by him and only came out decades later.

Infection_Ag11 said:

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94chem said:

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Ellis Wyatt said:

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McCarthy was right.

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Can you expound a bit?

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McCarthy's core premise, that communists had thoroughly infiltrated American politics, academics and entertainment, had more truth to it than the historical narrative formed in the decades since would have you believe. It was a very real problem. That being said many of his specific allegations against individuals and groups were exaggerated or outright fabricated, and it's abundantly clear the entire exercise was largely for the personal gain of a raging alcoholic and narcissist. It's also pretty clear from the historical record that however right he was it was largely due to dumb luck, as many of the biggest examples of his claims were entirely unknowable at the time by him and only came out decades later.

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So, he was occasionally right, but seldom in the right. And his self-aggrandizement and wanton destruction of innocent lives did far more harm than good in the early years of the Cold War.

The Epstein analogy is interesting, except...in this case, who exactly is McCarthy?