Modern Moron Book Review

“It’s time for some goddamn honesty in this world,” actress / activist, Rose McGowan said.

It’s been an open secret in Hollywood and the media, and they shame me while adulating my rapist McGowan said. 

The book “Catch and Kill” was released in October of last year. The book has some potent and shocking facts and allegations about Harvey Weinstein, Woody Allen, Roger Ailes, President Donald Trump, and other wealthy men of power.

Author Ronan Farrow was not assertive enough to me. He makes some great points and brought to light some of the harsh truths that go on beyond Hollywood’s closed doors, but his facts are too vague in many places.

The vagueness in “Catch and Kill” is not all to blame on Farrow, but if your going to write a book on sexually assaulted actresses and their perpetrators, hit the reader with more facts and don’t pull any punches.  

The term catch and kill is nothing new in the world of journalism. Edward Bernays used the term in his 1928 book, “Propaganda.” Usually it's very wealthy men, or large corporations that purchase the rights to various news stories and bury them, hence the real truth never reaches the masses, “Catch and Kill” is an appropriate title for this book.

In November of 2016, shortly before the presidential election, Dylan Howard, the Editor and Chief of the National Enquirer issued an unusual order to one of his staff members to empty out the safe and bring down the shredder. An employee at the National Enquirer said a disposal crew hauled away a more than customary volume of refuse. A Trump related document was among these papers that was shredded and never surfaced to the public.

Pedophilia, racism, and harassment are just some of the hideous things that big money buries. Did Woody Allen have a sexual encounter with Dylan Farrow, the sister of the author when she was a mere 7-years-old? Did President Trump gang rape a 13-year-old girl in 1994 with his then pal Jeffrey Epstein?

Dylan is a grown woman now, and the alleged sexual assault victim of Woody Allen. "Catch and Kill" leaves no clue about the details of this horrid alligation, and that baffles me. 

Farrow makes a stronger case against Trump. Trump may or may not have gang raped a 13-year-old girl with Epstein in 1994, but the simple facts remain. Trump was indeed good friends with Jeffrey Epstein in the 90s and Epstein was a convicted pedophile rapist.

“I’ve known Jeff (Epstein) for 15 years, terrific guy. He’s a lot of fun to be with...he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it, Jeffery enjoys his social life,” Trump said to Julie K. Brown, a Miami Herald writer in 2002.

In 2016, these allegations came out about Trump. To date, there are more than 20 sexual assault charges or allegation against Trump.

“I don’t even ask, I just kiss them or grab them by the **ssy,” Trump said two decades ago. 

The grown woman who accused Trump and Epstein of raping her in 1994 when she was 13-years-old said she was offered money to attend parties hosted by Epstein. The woman known as Jane Doe said her and other minors were forced to perfume sex acts on Trump as well as Epstein. These are allegations, not hard facts, but Jane Doe’s story has vital merit to it. Jane Doe said Trump threatened her and her family if she told on him. 

Jeffrey Epstein plead guilty and was jailed for having sex parties in the 1990s with girls as young as 14-years-old. Trump did in fact party with Epstein in the 90s. In court, Epstein said these junior high school aged girls were simply at his parties to provide messages to him and his guests. Once again, more facts, Trump attended parties in the 90s where girls as young as 14-year-old were giving messages to middle aged men!

In June of last year, writer E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of unzipping his pants and throwing her against the wall in the mid-1990s. Trump responded to her allegations by saying; she’s not my type, it never happened. He also said he did not know the woman. Evidence proved Trump wrong when a picture of Carroll and Trump together surfaced from that era. 

Harvey Weinstein is another invidious prick who thinks he is above the law and prides himself on abusing women. Weinstein raped Rose McGowan in the early 1990s she said, and I believe it. Back then, Weinstein had her sign some legal documents he drew up and gave her a $100,000. That is a common thing rich rapist tend to do. After sexually assaulting a woman, they give them a large sum of money, and have them sigh some legal documents.

Maybe because I know nothing firsthand of real abuse in any manner which is great for me, or perhaps it’s because I’m a man. I simply do not understand these women who wait for years, if not decades to come out with their sexual assault allegations against Weinstein and various other Hollywood executives.  

After reading this book, I understand how big money shrouds the truth in far too many cases. Some of Weinstein’s accusers may be doing it simple for publicity, but the facts remain, in a nine-month investigation period, five women accused Weinstein of harassment, sexual misconduct, and two claims of rape. In at least three of these five cases, financial settlements with strict nondisclosure agreements were used to prevent criminal proceedings and public revelation. Sixteen former and current executives and assistants at Weinstein’s companies collaborated with this story.

“Catch and Kill” is a 2.5 star read, and definitely not worth full retail price, but if you see this book in a bargain bin, or in one of those Little Library’s, you know, those tiny houses for books that are scattered throughout residential areas, it’s worth reading.  

Mark Izzy Schurr 

Modern Moron Book Review

The supreme manipulation of government leaders and their lies feed the frenzy of unwarranted wars, and the demonic implications of propaganda continue to blind the masses, while big business continues to flourish amid all the ballyhoo.

The lords of industry reap the profits of poison, via cigarettes, wars, insurance scandals and countless other atrocities. Sigmund Freud’s nephew, Edward Bernays book “Propaganda” was published in 1928 and has more then withstood the ultimate test, that which is time. More then 90 years ago, Bernays was advocating against the cigarette companies and illustrating the toxic effects of smoking.   

Think, say, or believe anything you want about smoking cigarettes, but the simple facts remain, more then 8 million people die each year because they smoked, and more then 1.2 non-smokers die each year from secondhand smoke. (The World Health Organization, July 2019.)  

Some smokers defend their habit with the same old talk; we are going to die anyway, my great granddaddy or my friends 99-year-old mother smokes 12 packs a day, and her lungs are perfect, meanwhile, 20-year-olds who never smoked a cigarette a day in their lives, die of lung cancer. Yes, statements like these are sometimes true, but older people who smoke and have no smoke related illnesses are the exception and not the rule. Half of the population that smokes cigarettes on a regular basis will die because of their habit.

Personally, I honestly do not care whether or not people smoke, I’m only glad I never acquired such a costly habit. The point I am making is that even as I’m typing this very second, there are lots of people and organizations advocating for a smoke free world and are livid how the tobacco industry’s target’s the youth.

Let’s face it, most people who start smoking start long before they finish high school. If your 20-years-old or older and you haven’t started smoking, chances are, you won’t ever start, so naturally, the smoking industry has to target the youth. Bernays futilely fought the big business of tabaco several decades before it was trendy, I found that interesting.

The 1928 book “Propaganda” would be a required read in my class if I was an English teacher. It’s short, to the point and relates to all the politics and propaganda going on today, as I’m sure it did more than 90-years-ago.

When I was still in high school in the early 1980s, Russia was the evil empire, now it’s North Korea, or so our government dictates to us. World leaders across the globe juke the youth into wars while making insane profits by sending other people’s children to die. In World War I, America was the light of the world, and were nothing but good, while the Germans were an evil race of demonic souls eager to destroy all that is holy and pure, or so the American government said, as I’m sure Germany told their youth the same about Americans.

America always tells the truth, Germany always lies, was the message the U.S. government propagated (Bernays wrote) in the 1920s and of course before World War I, which ended in 1918.  

J.P. Morgan has been involved in a lot of unethical and even illegal stock market practices Bernays said in this book. To this day, J.P. Morgan continues to make headlines because of shady business practices to say the least.

African Americans are still being lynched in the U.S. and they continue to suffer grave injustices Bernays said. Sound familiar? “Propaganda” is a vital piece in the literature puzzle.

In 1928, Bernays wrote how the media hypes things too quickly and sometimes without the facts. In case you don’t remember or have heard, the main source of news in the 1920s was from the news papers or the radio.   

The political sphere is still a viable source and necessary to the media, yet its evils are difficult to overlook. While I myself perceive the government as an evil entity, I am learning that government is also positive and needed in society. I learned this from Bernays wisdom of 1928.

As Bernays said, we all need to eat, crave amusement, long for beauty and respond to leadership. Without media propaganda, the good and necessary words and products would not reach a lot of the population.

Our minds are molded, and ideas are suggested by people we have never heard of.

“Propaganda will never die out. Intelligent people must realize that propaganda is the modern instrument by which they can fight for productive ends, and help to bring order out of chaos,” Bernays said.   

Mark Izzy Schurr