magic number FOUR

9/28/09

So Im using my roommates laptop, which is an Italian mac so if any weird symbols come out, blame it onnn the Italian macbook. 

Polanksy, Samuel

(wont lie, I just randomly picked him out of the ALBA file list of people)

Basically this file was THE shortest file I have ever seen. It was a 1 paragraph email from someone asking to know more about Samuel Polansky. However, what they did reveal was that Samuel was born in Newark, NJ on June 7, 1914. 

This then made me wonder (this is a sidenote by the way) of what his life must have been like during the Great Depression. 

He had a clerk job but then left October 9, 1937 to join the Abraham Lincoln Brigades. He was a first aid man in the Lincoln Battalion it states.

This is the most interesting part. Polansky was "knwon for bravery" it says and then it gives an example. Basically he went through raining fire of bullets to pull a soldier out of danger who was up in front of him aways. He was then later captured during the retreat from Gandesa but was exchanged with 71 others on April 22, 1939. This is where the email ends.

With more research (from another persons file, if anyone is interested in the source, here is the link: http://www.alba-valb.org/volunteers/david-hyman-hy-wallach), the Battle of Gandesa was the first time blitzkrieg was used. In the book, The Irish and the Spanish Civil War by  Di R. A. Stradling, it states that "all the prisoners were transferred to various points in north central Spain to the camp at San Pedro de Cardena, a monastary" so Im assuming our friend Samuel Polansky was also brought there.

Well, I have no more to say or record about Mr. Polansky so here my blog entry ends. 

Adios. 

three sounds like tree

9/21/09

.....I hope I'm doing these blogs/posts correctly...otherwise....that woud suck.....

Alright today is British Vounteers: Ambulance Drivers!
by Stevenson, McFarquhar & Scottish Ambulance Unit.

(Article)

There's two British doctors. You don't really hear about the second one but one of them is Len Crome. He was told by Harry Pollitt (Secretary General of the CPGB) to join the Scottish Ambulance Unit because he wanted to help the cause in Spain.

So then he went to Stevenson's home because Stevenson was organizing the group and turns out he's Sir Stevenson, with a grand house, butlers, the whole amazingness. So the guy takes him on and Crome tells his brother to tell his parents that he was "going on a prestigious medical expedition to Central Africa for a few months). I thought this was the most interesting part because we heard how people would make up stories to get away to France.

Anyways then Crome meets this person named Miss Jacobson who is "wishy washy" with politics and he then found her distributing food donated by the Spanish workers for the Spain Republic to right wing Madrilenos who took refuge at the British embassy. Deceit 1! Then he also found out that Captain Christo Lance, known as the "Spanish Pimpernel" was bandaging Franco supporters and smuggling them to Valenica so they could get out of Republic Spain. Basically 4 members of the Scottish Ambulance Unit were accused of robbing corpses on the battlefield also!

So Crome gets fed up with the deceivery (sp?) and decides to join the Lincoln Bridgades and Ms. J gets very mad and tells him he must meet with the British consul but when the consul comes back, he smiles at Crome and says it's perfectly fine and thanks for all the work he did.


It's a happy ending.

deux

9/18/09

Maritime Workers: Volunteers in Spain!

In this volume, there's a small booklet called, A Tribute to American Maritime Workers Who Fought for World Democracy in the Trenches of Spain by Roy Hudson.

Basically the booklet talks how the issues in Spain were seen as affecting the future of democracy in that if Spain fell to facism, then facism's power would increase around the world. I guess you could say they wanted to act like the neighborhood watchers.

It's quite a sad booklet because it shows pictures of dead men who were seamen. Apparently 400 seamen from America joined, which is cool, because you don't hear much about the seamen that participated in the Spanish Civil War, along with the Latin-Americans.

Then there was a news article discussing the aftermaths of the Spanish Civil War for the maritime workers. When the seamen came back, there were no jobs for them left. The honored Lincoln Brigade seamen vets could only get jobs as seamen. They were also given no recognition or public congratulations. The only people who got jobs were those who had been union officials.

Anyways, at the back of the booklet, which I found the most interesting, was a little card that you could fill out. You could option to "Join the Communist Party" or learn more about it. You would have to mail the thing to 35 East 12 Street NY. We should all stop by sometime and see what's up.

Trip numero uno

I'm awful at this posting thing so I guess I'll just put up the dates with each new entry whenever I'm on this blog.

9/17/09

Today I had the archive for the Battle of Madrid (ALBA Vertical File, in case anyone else wants to find it). Basically it's someone's account of the battle. At first you think it's a letter but then you realize it's not signed or addressed to someone. Anyways back to the point, it's a firsthand account of the Battle of Madrid.

So this guy (it sounds like a guy and the handwriting seems like a guy's), he talks about how there is this brigade fromed in Orihuela. They had no decent preparation for the war; the only thing that kept them going was the thought of helping this greater cause. So after the quick training they go on their way to Madrid where they try to avoid the Fascist aviation, which is obviously given by either Italy or Germany (I'm guessing Germany).

Then they're near Madrid, just on the outskirts hiding in an olive grove. And the cool thing here is some literary function of him describing an olive he eats. What happens is he bites into an olive and it's bitter and he states that this is the first time fruits haven't been harvested.

All of a sudden there's a turn of events when they start getting hit by the Fascists and realize that there was a betrayal amongst them. Everyone thinks they're going to die but then out of nowhere, these places come out of nowhere and start attacking the bigger planes, which are flying up above at the same time.

The guy then states that one of the guys from their "helper" forces has parachuted down from his burning plane but he's shot dead and he can't believe that people would be that cruel.

Afterwards the "flies" as he calls them, leave as they have to refuel.

This is where his account of the battle ends.


In this folder, there was also a newspaper article about the Battle of Madrid with some basic summaries but I felt that this drew me in more.

I found some funny little cartoons dealing with facism because this blog seemed so empty and so I put up a few for all to bring a few laughs. (: