Good Night and Good Luck is an excellent movie. Kudos to George Clooney for a great screenplay. David Straithairn nails Edward R. Murrow and definitely deserved the Oscar nomination this year. This movie described how the great Edward R. Murrow took on the junior senator from Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy, who saw "commie pinkos" everywhere. It was about the pursuit of truth, and those who did facing uncontrolled governmental power and personal risk to do so.
I was impressed by the similarities between the hunt for the "red threat" in the 50's and the current paranoia we are experiencing now with regards to the "terrorist threat". I believe in 50 years we will look back at this time and recognize it as a time where we willingly gave up hard won civil rights in the name of fear. The same fear that the persecution of innocent people accused of communism aroused in American's in the 50's. In my opinion, the violations endured by honest American citizens at the hands of Joseph McCarthy is equaled by what is currently happening in our country. The "Patriot Act", illegal wiretapping, holding people for years without any due process, checking people's library records, prosecuting bit players instead of making those at the top accountable, ...all these things are far more hurtful to our current civil liberties than requiring our government to hold fast to the things this country supposedly stands for, one of which is freedom from oppression by our own government.
Hopefully, in 50 years, it won't be too late.
