CounterPunch
December
7, 2002
American Journal
Phil Berrigan, America's Greatest Arms Inspector Dies; Meanwhile
Sado-Masochist Arms Inspector McGeorge Is Lashed By Media Storm
by ALEXANDER COCKBURN
American has lost one of its senior weapons inspectors,
one of its most ardent would-be dismantler of weapons of mass
destruction. Phil Berrigan died in the evening last Friday, December
6, at Jonah House, the community in Baltimore he co-founded in
1973, surrounded by family and friends. For 40 years he campaigned
against war and violence, most of all against nuclear weapons.
Challenge America's weapons of mass destruction, and the state
locks you up. Phil Berrigan spent about eleven years in prison
in the cause of peace and disarmament.
Berrigan wrote a final statement in the
days before his death. His final comments included this: "I
die with the conviction, held since 1968 and Catonsville, that
nuclear weapons are the scourge of the earth; to mine for them,
manufacture them, deploy them, use them, is a curse against
God, the human family, and the earth itself."
Blessed are the peacemakers, Jesus told
the crowd in the Sermon on the Mount, and Lo, Ronald Reagan named
the MX nuclear missile the Peacemaker.
The Berrigans and their brave comrades
shed their blood on a nuclear warhead being manufactured at the
GE plant in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, recalling the blood
that Jesus shed for sinful humanity, and Lo, they named a ballistic
missile submarine USS City of Corpus Christi, the city of the
body of Christ and they probably knew not what they did, aside
from honoring the home port of some Texan pork dispenser on Capitol
Hill.
The word from Jonah House is that those
who mourn for Berrigan and wish to honor his memory may make
donations in Berrigan's name to Citizens for Peace in Space,
Global Network Against Nuclear Weapons, Nukewatch, Voices in
the Wilderness, the Nuclear Resister, or any Catholic Worker
house.
Philip Berrigan, was born in 1923 in
the Minnesota Iron Range, near Bemidji, maybe a hundred miles
west of the birthplace of the man who wrote The Masters of War.
He was the first priest to ride in a Civil Rights movement Freedom
Ride.
In 1967 he poured blood on draft files
in Baltimore with 3
Others, known as the "Baltimore Four." A year later
he burned draft files in Catonsville, MD with 8 others, including
his brother, Fr. Daniel Berrigan. That action was known as the
"Catonsville Nine." He was convicted of destruction
of US property, destruction of Selective Service records, and
interference with the Selective Service Act of 1967.
In 1971, while in prison, he was named
co-conspirator by J. Edgar Hoover and a Harrisburg grand jury,
charged with plotting to kidnap Henry Kissinger and blow up the
utility tunnels of US Capitol buildings. In the event he was
convicted only of violating prison rules for smuggling out letters.
In September 9, 1980 he poured blood and hammered with 7 others
on Mark 12A warheads at a GE nuclear missile plant, King of Prussia,
PA. He was charged with conspiracy, burglary, and criminal mischief;
convicted and imprisoned. The action became known as the "Plowshares
Eight;" and began the international Plowshares movement.
He participated in 5 more Plowshares actions, resulting in 7
years of imprisonment.
Is McGeorge's
SM Sex Life Relevant
To His Iraq Mission?
And now to another weapons inspector,
about whom there has been a great uproar over the past ten days.
The weapons inspection team massing in Baghdad under Blix was
scheduled to be the first such unit to be graced, if that's the
word, with an experienced torturer.
The Washington Post set the ball rolling
with a story by John Grimaldi to the effect that Harvey John
"Jack" McGeorge of Woodbridge, then in New York waiting
to be sent to Iraq as a munitions analyst, is a figure of consequence
in the world of BDSM, aka bondage, domination and sado-masochism.
Co-founder and past president of Black Rose, a Washington-area
pansexual S&M group, and the former chairman of the board
of the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, McGeorge is also
a founding officer of the Leather Leadership Conference Inc.,
which "produces training sessions for current and potential
leaders of the sadomasochism/leather/fetish community,"
according to its Web site.
Don't you love the way "community",
once used to evoke the organic virtues of medieval village life
has now widened its ambit to dignify almost any association.
"The cannibal community", the coprophagite community"
etc.
Why now do we have the expose of McGeorge
as one well versed in the wisdom of the lash? Grimaldi let the
cat out of the bag, by disclosing that in the arms inspection
community, McGeorge's selection over supposedly better qualified
experts had caused rage, and presumably the leaking to the Post
of McGeorge's baroque sexual pursuits. "McGeorge was picked
for the diplomatically sensitive mission over some of the most
experienced disarmament sleuths in the world. A UN spokesman
said McGeorge was part of a group recommended by the State Department,
which in turn said it was merely forwarding names for consideration."
McGeorge is a former Marine and Secret
Service specialist who offers seminars on "weaponization
of chemical and biological agents" for $595 a session. Since
1983, he's run his own firm, Public Safety Group Inc., which
sells "bioterror products" (presumably not including
bio-engineered corn ) to governments. We should also note that
according to a later story by Grimaldi, one of McGeorge's former
Secret Service supervisors, offered this account of his resignation
from the Secret Service. As a Marine reservist from 1974 to 1979,
McGeorge took a Claymore antipersonnel mine to a private residence
and passed it along to a Marine colleague in the Special Forces.
A Claymore mine is an explosive that can be remotely activated;
larger versions can damage light vehicles. Later, the mine blew
up prematurely when an assassin tried to plant it under a car.
The assassin was seriously injured, and the subsequent investigation
led to McGeorge. Supervisors asked for his resignation, the former
supervisor said. What assassin? What car? The Post didn't say.
In the New York Post Aly Sujo fleshed
out some useful details, including news that Black offers a forum
for "different expressions of power in love and play,"
including "bondage and discipline, fetishism and cross-dressing",
also that the 53-year old McGeorge is "chubby". McGeorge
went to ground, after telling the Washington Post that "I
am who I am. I am not ashamed of who I am - not one bit."
Amid the uproar after Grimaldi's initial story, Blix stood by
his man and said he had spurned a resignation offer from McGeorge.
The UN said all inspectors had been briefed on local cultural
practices in Iraq, which of course do include state sponsored
torture in that nation's prisons.
In England, homeport for spankers, the
McGeorge stories were swiftly stigmatized as efforts to sabotage
Blix's mission. The Guardian headlined its story, "UN team
faces smear campaign" with a story by Suzanne Goldenberg
to the effect that the BDSM stuff "provides a convenient
target for critics of Mr Blix, particularly aggrieved former
inspectors. They say he has overlooked potentially qualified
experts by requiring applicants to quit their government jobs
before applying. There are also fears that some members of the
teams are from private industry, and will use the mission to
garner media attention and sell their products."
Meanwhile the BDSM community rallied
around their man. The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom issued
a "call to action" urging sympathizers to "Please
support the SM community and Jack McGeorge by dropping a note
to the various news agencies covering this story. McGeorge's
sexuality is a personal issue and should have no bearing on his
qualifications for any job."
Suggested text for the protest note:
"It is irresponsible for a news organization like The Washington
Post to attempt to discredit Jack McGeorge as a weapons inspector
simply because of his sexuality. Many millions of Americans engage
in SM according to a 1990 Kinsey Institute report. These people
are doctors, lawyers, teachers, and news reporters, as well as
professionals like Jack McGeorge. As a former Chairman of the
National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, McGeorge ably assisted
our national advocacy organization in fighting this sort of discrimination
and persecution. McGeorge has also volunteered his valuable time
to educate adults about safe, sane and consensual sexual expression."
The NCSF bulletin noted helpfully that
letters to the press are "an effective way to convey a positive
image of alternate sexual practices such as SM, swinging, or
polyamory. You can help to correct negative social myths and
misconceptions about these types of practices."
The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom
does have its critics. Bill Dobbs of Queerwatch remarked to me
that "NCSF has often acted in an opportunistic and unprincipled
manner, typically slamming those more marginalized or under great
pressure in the pursuit of respectability for itself." Of
course the sm-leather-fetish crowd, or community, suffers all
kinds of discrimination and oppression, and NCSF deserves credit
for gathering people together to advance sexual pleasure.
That said, Dobbs argues that the tactics
and strategy of the group merit consideration and they reveal
something of the political values and character of those in command,
like Jack McGeorge.
It seems that on McGeorge's watch NCSF
came to the defense of some 'dungeon parties' held on a regular
basis in Baltimore. Baltimore zoning and other authorities were
bringing the wrathful law down on the party promoters. NCSF's
defense? Why bother these parties, they are nothing like the
topless or strip clubs in Baltimore that the law was written
for.
So here was NCSF trying to paint itself
as 'good' at the expense of others that it would paint as 'bad.'
Topless bars and strip clubs are an endangered species across
the country so why drag them into the mess? Then, again on McGeorge's
watch, NCSF waded into a Pennsylvania case where a scoutmaster
faced very serious charges in connection with some hazing of
boy scouts under his charge. State police accused John T. Levendosky,
52, of hanging the boys from trees by their bound hands and carving
the letter "T" into their chests with a knife, telling
them it stood for "trust and training." Police said
Levendosky did not sexually assault the boys -- aged 11, 12,
and 13 -- but made them play several sadomasochistic games during
their private overnight trip near Derry, 50 miles east of Pittsburgh.
The cops said they raided his home and found sadomasochistic
pornography. Levendosky "admitted to having always been
fascinated with bondage and servitude and stated that he just
wanted to see how people react in these situations," the
police report said.
Once again, Dobbs asks, what did NCSF
gain by its opportunistic tactic in calling for the scoutmaster
to be put through the wringer? Given a situation with two minors,
an adult authority figure, s-m and homosexual overtones - what
prosecutor in the country needed to be nudged to throw the book
at the guy?
"I cannot support NCSF," Dobbs
recently wrote to the organization, and wish it would recognize
the perils of seeking respectability at the expense of vulnerable
individuals and groups. To the extent that the BDSM/leather constituency
has been unorganized, it is too bad that e just some of the reasons
that I do not care for NCSF's politics. In many cases your group
does harm. All this is sad because the core constituencies you
do serve, those who engage in BDSM have historically been unorganized
and need to get politically active."
Well, that puts another perspective
on McGeorge, doesn't it? Flay him not for his tastes, but for
his political cowardice in defending those tastes. So yes, it
is relevant to examine McGeorge's character and experience, contrary
to what pwog crowd has been writing. On this issue there's been
plenty of knee-jerking from the pwogs. Had McGeorge been involved
with Focus on the Family, might some have so quickly jumped to
his defense? The religious right and McGeorge's SM advocacy work
(distinct from his sex life) are both wrapped around politics.
One wonders what some pwogs and others have to say now that the
grenade/car bomb story is out. This is not simply hiring someone
for a line job at a Saturn plant. As Dobbs says, There are plenty
of situations where a person's experience as well as character
and integrity are quite relevant, even to a point of becoming
factors in hiring. It seems from one web ad, that McGeorge wants
a female slave. Now it all makes sense. Of course the State Dept.
sent over his name. McGeorge is a great American.
SM Girl Scouts
In Twin Cities
For political courage let us hail a group
of youths who "have an interest in BDSM", a Girl Scout
Gold Award project. The organizers are firmly to the left of
the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom since NCSF always making
a point of fighting for adults-only sexual freedom. This news
comes courtesy of Lavender Magazine of Minneapolis, MN.
Queer Youth Exist was created by two
high school students as their Girl Scout Gold Award project,
" an education and safety group for youth under the age
of 21 who have an interest in BDSM, fetishism, or any queer or
alternative culture." Queer Youth Exist was started by two
high school students, Hedge (a senior) and Katze (a junior).
Both are also Girl Scouts (Hedge has been a Girl Scout for 13
years), and this is their Girl Scout Gold Award project. You
may not know this, but a Gold Award is the highest honor for
a Girl Scout--the equivalent of becoming an Eagle Scout in Boy
Scouts. Over to Katze, as quoted in Lavender mag: "We're
trying to make youth be less of a threat to the adult community-
we know how to act appropriately."
Both Hedge and Katze see BDSM and fetish
culture is alluring to the younger crowd. "They're attracted
to the young Goth BDSM culture--to the shiny clothes, attractive
people, great music, and club nights," claims Katze. "It's
a fun culture, and people want to be part of it even if they
don't practice BDSM. They want to separate themselves from the
Abercrombie and Fitch jock crowd--they want to be with older
people who are in their culture scene." We'll probably have
a presidential candidates forty years down the road, saying that
as a kid in the Twin Cities she "experimented with BDSM"
and it was first-class training in the art of firm government."
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