www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall American Politics: a modest proposal

I've not had the pleasure of meeting Hritzko - though I think I would enjoy it, and I flatter myself that he would enjoy it too - but I immediately agree that he is more intelligent than George W. Bush. Reason? ANYBODY is more intelligent than George W. Bush.
Bill Buckley is a bird of paradise, whose contributions to discourse on political topics are delightful - which is not to say that I agree with his politics. As for his preference to be governed by 500 people picked at random from the telephone book rather than 500 Harvard alumni, I would probably agree. As to Yale, during that same campaign for Mayor of New York, Lindasy kept taunting Buckley with the charge that Buckely was really from Connecticut, not from New York. After a few rounds, Buckley riposted that he had no idea what Lindsay might have against Connecticut - unless, perhaps, it was that Lindsay had gone to Connecticut to get an education (at Yale) and was, for manifest reasons, dis-saatisfied with the results!
Incognitus

In 1983 Ukrainian Canadians (mostly Montreal) decided to produce a film about the genocidal famine of 1932-1933 in Ukraine, in which over 7 million people died slow aggonizing deaths. Jurij Luhovy of Montreal (one of the producers of the film) also examined the complete destruction of Ukraine's intelligencia and churches by the Russian Communists. He interviewed over 100 survivors in Montreal about their experiences.

The movie won rave reviews and several awards at prominent film festivals around the world. It was even nominated for an Academy award (best documentary). It was shown on major networks in Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan, and even 'leftist' France.

In spite of all this exposure, the American private networks refused to show the documentary, even during non-prime time slots. Several attempts were made by prominent American scholars to have the movie shown on PBS but the 'leftist element' at the network refused to air it, feering "it may offend the Soviets". PBS's official reason for refusing to air the documentary was: "just like the public networks, we feel that there would be no interest on the part of our viewers to learn of the tragic events which occured in Ukraine 50 years ago" - end discussion.

When Bill Buckley heard that he film was being refused airing on PBS in the USA he became enraged. He took on the 'cause' of the Ukrainian genocidal famine (and aspirations for a separate nation) and used every resourse available to him to ensure the airing.

Bill and his influencial friends lobbied PBS and were refused. He then decided to produce a special two hour edition of his very popular syndicated television show 'Firing Line' through which he would air the movie 'Harvest of Despair'.

In order to guarantee it's success and disprove the 'leftist element' at the network, he did several things; First, he funded a blitz ad campaign to promote the show, including: commercials on PBS and articles in the National Review and other journals. Second, he invited a star panel of guests to discuss the events of the era just prior and after the showing of 'The Harvest of Despair'. The end result was that the movie was one of the most watched shows on PBS that year. Bill was able, like nobody else in the USA, to expose the Russian Communist's genocial destruction of the Ukrainian peoples, intelligencia, culture, and Orthodox churches.

Although those events occured a generation ago, Bill Buckley will always hold a special place in my heart.

Hritzko

The film "Harvest of Despair" was produced by the Toronto based Ukrainian Famine Research Committee (since renamed the Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Center). It was released in 1985, not 1983, and was not nominated for an Academy Award.

Incidentally, Harvard has reprehensibly decided to use the same title for a book that it has just published which deals with life under German occupied Ukraine in WWII.

No, I am praying for all of us, since we are the ones who will lose.

There was a decision made in 1983 on the 50th anniversary of the genocidal famine by the Ukrainian Canadian Committee to produce a movie about the event. I never said it was released in that year.

There were many groups who wanted to produce it but it was decided that one well produced movie would be better than a dozen 'home spun flics'. The group you mentioned was in fact selected, but the film itself was almost completely shot (interviews), edited, and produced in Montreal by Jurij Luhovy.

For more information:

Ukrainian Genocidal Famine 1932 - 1933 [ihffilm.com]

Oh - if the part about the Academy award or anything else I have stated is not true, you may want to contact this and other sites to make the appropriate corrections.


Do not believe for a moment that the same titles were chosen by chance. It is part of a well funded and orchestrated campaign to divert attention from the Russian genocide against the Ukrainian peoples.

Hritzko