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The Daily Dose/May 5, 2010
By Gaylon Kent
The Writer's Shack
IN-PROGRESS CAPSULE BOOK REVIEW: Defend The Realm: The Authorized History of MI5, By Christopher Andrew: Usually we like to finish a book before diving in with our usual brilliant analysis, but Defend The Realm is so big, and as noted we are pretty leisurely readers and at the rate we are going may well be at it through Labor Day, we thought we'd start in with a review now.
Confessional: Also, we needed material for today's column.
Deep Background: MI5 is the British equivalent of the CIA, was founded in 1909 as the Security Service Bureau.
Forward Progress: Right now we're up to the eve of World War II. Hitler has taken control of Germany and British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain has been spending most of September, 1938 shuttling between London and Munich wrapping up negotiations for Germany's upcoming firebombing of England.
Baby Steps: MI5 started out trying to catch spies in the UK and it wasn't too difficult, with early German spies all but wearing shirts that said "SPY" on them.
One German spy, looking for naval intelligence, moored his houseboat near a British naval installation and flew the German colors from the stern while throwing lavish parties while attempting to steer the conversation towards naval matters.
Not Too Bright: Meanwhile another spy, named Graves, marched into a chief constables office and demanded to know if they suspected he was a German spy.
It Takes Two To Tango: The Brits weren't exactly wizards during this time, either, later taking Graves up on his offer to become a double agent. It shouldn't be a bulletin that Graves merely used this as an opportunity to return to Germany for awhile, supposedly hot on the heels of some top secret German spy book while actually using money he requested from the British to flee to the United States.
FunFact: On one occasion British intelligence also declined the request of a spy to be arrested for espionage.
Those Zany Brits: The hilarity continued in WW I, when the Brits, in an effort to continue a deception they thought had not been discovered, sent dispatches to Germany under the hand of a spy they had recently shot. Germany, however, knew about the spy's execution - it had read about it in the British press - but dutifully requested more intelligence and even sent money that was asked for.
Peace In Our Time: The rise of Hitler wasn't exactly a highlight either, with MI5, like The Times, not getting too worked up over who would turn out to be the most evil person in history taking power of a country smarting from losing World War I.
Jolly Good: The Times had this to say in an editorial shortly after Hitler took power:
In all of this there is nothing to suggest the new Chancellor will be immoderate in his foreign policy.
It Get's Better: His Majesty's government couldn't even be bothered to get warrants to snoop on the leader of the British Union of Facists (BUF), which was getting money from Mussolini, even after the BUF's leader got married in a private ceremony "attended by Hitler in Goebbel's drawing room."
Well, We Think It's Funny: The book is sprinkled with typical dry, British humor, too, including this passage about Mata Hari, an exotic dancer the Brits executed as a spy in World War I. Mata Hari was Dutch, but she concocted a more exotic upbringing as a dancer in Hindu temples in India, enabling the upper classes who paid to see her dance that they were:
"…participating not in the vulgar excitement of the can-can at the Moulin Rouge but in the sacred mysteries of the Orient."
Standard Internet Disclaimer: Though Gaylon is fairly well read he is not Einstein for Pete's sake and is not a professional book reviewer. Reviews are based on his own personal tastes, are completely subjective and not measured against established literary standards. He has a habit of re-reading selected favorites and books that were published as early as the 20th century.
We Interrupt This Program For A Word From The Ratings Department: Following Is The Official Writer's Shack Capsule Review Rating scale:
EX - Excellent; as good as the medium can produce in every respect.
VG - Very Good. Well worth your time.
GD - Good. More or less worth your time.
AR - All Right. Not completely without merit.
SP - Nothing of substance; a steaming pile, utterly without merit.
Provisional Rating: GD. The depth and scope of Defend The Realm is beyond what most laymen need. For example, we picked it up because we've read a few John Le Carre and Len Deighton novels. Serious historians, and we know how many of them love this column, will find it illuminating and we're enjoying it too.
1-2-3…REPEAT AS NEEDED: Cy Young of the Boston Americans throws the first perfect game in American League history on this date in 1904, retiring all 27 Philadelphia A's in a 3-0 victory.
Dry, Technical Matter: The win is the 381st of Young's career and was the third perfect game in major league history.
Get Out Your Record Books, But Don't Open Them Yet: Young used this game to help establish major league records for Most Consecutive Hitless Innings (24.1) - a record that still stands - and Most Consecutive Shutout Innings (45).
3…2…1…Blastoff: Alan Shepard becomes the first American in space on this date in 1961 when he makes a 15-minute sub-orbital flight aboard Freedom 7. Shepard flew 302 miles and attained and altitude of 116 miles. He also become the first human to land in the spaceship he flew in, as a previous Soviet mission had seen Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space, eject from his spacecraft and parachute to the ground.
Fly In The Ointment: Soviet dictator Nikita Krushchev wasn't too impressed, calling the flight a 'flea hop".
Thought For The Day: When everybody owns everything nobody will take care of anything. - Aristotle
Answer To The Last Trivia Question: The only original National Association team that is still in existence IS the Boston Red Stockings, who moved to the National League in 1876, moved to Milwaukee in 1953 and became the Atlanta Braves in 1966.
Today's Stumper: The trivia question will return.
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