The Dollop with Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds - 94 - The Business Plot

Episode Date: July 4, 2015

Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds examine General Smedly Butler and The Business PlotSourcesTour DatesRedbubble MerchPatreon

When you're staying at an Airbnb you might be like me wondering could my place be an Airbnb and if it could what could it earn? You could be sitting on an Airbnb and not even know it. That in-law sweet guest house where your parents stay only part-time Airbnb it and make some money the rest of the year whether you could use a little extra money to cover some bills or for something a little more fun. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at airbnb.ca slash host. Hello you're listening to the dollop. This is a bi-weekly podcast starring Dave

Anthony. Each week I read a story from American history to my friend. What's happening? Gareth Reynolds who has no idea what the topic is about. Thank you! What is happening? Do you want to look who to do? I'll do one bottle. People say this is funny. Not Gary Gareth. Dave okay? Someone or something is tickling people. Is it for fun? And this is not going to come to Tickly Clot go. You are queen fakie of hate uptown. All hail Queen Shit of Liesville. A bunch of religious virgins go to mingle and do what? Frank? Hi Gary. No. Is he done my friend? No. Gary welcome to the podcast. Should we just pre-record what this podcast is?

Because I think you're taking a little too much creative liberty with how you're just... Sorry am I being too creative? It's just... I like that there's a freedom to this podcast. I'm talking about limiting that. Yeah. I think that's wrong. Yeah. I think you're a wrong person. Yeah. Well I never told you. I say I wanted to tell you about this. What's that? I never told you the story about when I flew back from Sydney with you because it's pretty funny. Okay. Because what happened was somebody at one of the shows, some people were very nice and thought that I might like marijuana. So some of the shows, some people gave me marijuana. I don't know

why they thought that. But somebody gave me... Because you like marijuana. Huh? Go ahead. So somebody was very nice and they gave me some pot chocolate. You know. Oh dude. You can't eat the edibles. You don't know what this is. No. On the country I think flying on an edible is a great decision because they knocked me out. Like I told you when we flew to Australia I slept literally the whole flight except for maybe 40 minutes. And on the way back I probably slept for everything except like an hour 45 when I watched me, myself and Irene. Now the flight back, we stayed out late the night before we left and we... We did

stay out late. And we were gonna maybe see if we stayed up all night and then at like 3.45 I was like I'm going to bed. You were like let's go to bed so we got into bed together because we sleep together. But anyway so I get up and we're leaving like 6 a.m. and I see this pot chocolate and I'm like oh shit. Yeah. I'm just gonna eat a piece of this. Yeah. So I eat a piece of it and then as we remember when we were there there was torrential downpours the worst rain that Sydney's had in decades. Right. So as we're going to the airport I'm thinking oh shit is our flight gonna be delayed? Because my whole angle is like

this is just gonna knock me out on the flight like I'll just be on another planet by the time we get on the plane I'll just pass out. But then we get there and when we check in the woman at Virgin I don't know if you remember she was like eat black soul raw. We were both... I do remember that. Yeah. Because we... Because I looked fried. Yeah. Like a fucking... But I was really starting to hump. And so so we're in there whatever and our flight's delayed three hours which I'm like shit because I'm really starting to like feel this edible that I don't know where it came from. And then we you and I went to get a bite to eat

and we sat down and you looked at me and you just go dude your eyes are so red. I don't remember that. And you're a friend of mine I should feel totally comfortable being like Dave. I ate pot chocolate this morning because I'm not a grown-up and and I didn't expect a flight to be delayed. I'm tripping a little bit right now while we're in this 50s diner in the Sydney Airport but instead I was just like tell him nothing. Don't tell him anything. That so explains why you're being so fucking away. And I was like I think if you remember I was like how's Heather? Yeah. You were like what? I was like how's your wife? And then

it gets better. Then I go because you say my eyes are fried I go I got to go to the bathroom. But I went to a pharmacy to get eye drops. But as I'm like tripping I'm not your dad. I know I did I just I was so high that I just got in this paranoid state where I was like I just didn't want to be ridiculed. Sure. So I was like if I it was like Dave's gonna make jokes it's not gonna be good. Yeah. So then I go and I buy eye drops I put the eye drops in and then I'm like where the fuck was that restaurant? Because that airport is huge and then I'm like wandering around like where were we? And then I'm like what if Dave is watching

me right now going like what is he doing? He's 15 feet away from where we're eating. And then and then remember when we checked in I'm half my ticket was missing. Yeah. The important half. Yeah. I'm like am I gonna be okay? And you were like what is happening right now? It's because I was so fucking gone. I was so gone that I was like no one can know. It all fucking makes sense. Yeah. I've been meaning to tell you. Yeah. The whole time. Yeah. And you were like you were like you're so tired. And I was like real tired man as I was just like just get on that plane. I was just like a convict like leaving. Yeah no you're lucky you

didn't tell me I would have told the police. It was it was that I thought you would be like well yeah I mean you probably want another one or the colors moving and I'd be like right now I can't handle jokes. July 30th 1881. Scared me I thought we were okay. Smedley Butler was born in Westchester, Pennsylvania. Smedley Butler. Smedley Butler the oldest of three boys. His parents Thomas and Maud Butler. Jesus. Yeah good names right. Really dealt a short hand in the name game. Yeah. Smedley and Maud over here. It's us. Fucking dog shit. Dog shit. Dog shit's a terrible name. Listen so is Smedley. They came from local Quaker

families both his father and mother's families have been in the country since the 1600s. His father was a lawyer a judge and for 31 years a congressman and the chair of the House Naval Affairs Committee. His maternal grandfather was Republican congressman from 1887 to 1891 so he came from the fucking shit. Yeah American. Right. Fucking awesome American. But Dave I think you could be a little less upset with him. Smedley attended popular private schools in Philadelphia. He was the captain of the basketball team in quarterback. I say pass it over here Buffy. Then he dropped out of school and as 17 years old

enlisted in the Marine Corps during the Spanish-American War. Okay. He had to lie about his age and of course he received a direct commission as a Marine second lieutenant. Was it just that easy that you were just like 18? They were like move along. Yeah I think they know he gave a shit. Yeah okay. Come on in. All right well your story checks out right this way. It's weird you look seven but you say you're 18. Yep 18 years old. Yes sir. After the war in which he really didn't do dick he was sent to the Philippines. There he got loaded in his room one night and was relieved of command after what is described as an

unspecified incident. Hmm. Can only imagine. Yeah get it. Yeah smashed in a room alone. And an unspecified incident. Yeah you're alone and you're drunk. It's naked or master. There's something smashing shit up. Smashing naked. Yeah naked masturbating. Smashing masturbating. Smashing masturbating. Smashing masturbating. The Philippines is where Smelly saw his first action. He led Marines in taking a town from rebels and then rewarded himself with an Eagle Globe and Anchor tattoo that started at his throat and went all the way down to his waist. Oh shit. An Eagle Globe? Eagle Globe and Anchor. That's the classic. That's the classic.

Okay. Right. Right. Yeah. Nope. Marine tattoo. They're not normally that size. No you just get a little bit smaller. You can go small. Yep. Doesn't need to be the size of a legal anchor. It does not. No. Next he went to fight in the Boxer Rebellion in China where his bravery earned him a promotion to captain. After that it was on a Central America where he fought in U.S. wars like the Banana War that were simply to help U.S. corporations. This bummed him out. It was in Honduras that he got his nickname Old Gimlet Eye. Because he had gin tears? Maybe he ate some pot brownies. Oh come on. We're in the show now. That was the

meander. This was because of his feverish bloodshot eyes from an unnamed tropic fever that he had. Oh Jesus. It gave him an enhanced penetrating and bellicose stare. Sorry. So he had a disease that gave him a weird stare and nobody cared? He got crazy red eye in the jungle and they just nicknamed Old Gimlet Eye. You know it'll get rid of that. A nickname. We just got to give people a heads up. Move over curing disease. He came back to the U.S. and married Ethel Conway Peters. Then he was off again. Just time to the Philippines. It didn't go well. Smedley had a nervous breakdown and came back to the U.S. for

nine months to get it together. He managed to coal mine in West Virginia where he observed the brutal treatment of coal miners. Uh-huh. They didn't have it because the coal miners. Let alone the Canaries. They're the forgotten heroes in all those. Girl. Canaries had it the worst. Girl, you keep preaching. Think about the Canary dollop. Conalop. Conalop. Then he jumped back into the Marines the first chance he got. He was off to Nicaragua where he led a battle against rebels with the temperature of a hundred and four. Jesus. He's not good in the jungle. Run over there. Throw that sin. Throw that. Throw that. Eat the leaves.

Oh boy. I'm gonna sit down. I am gassed. Why are your eyes so red? Oh, it's like they call him a gimlet. Then it was off to Panama where he was stationed and he brought his family. He eventually had three kids. Smedley was given a spy assignment. He was to go into Mexico and to develop an invasion plan. Okay. A plan to invade Mexico. Yeah. Alright. Something tells me it's gonna involve the border. So he went into Mexico posing as a railroad official named Mr. Johnson. Yeah, that's so fed. Like, did he not think of it, but he had to think of it on the fly? Nothing. Nothing. Maybe he was just so tired of

Smedley Butler that he was like, I gotta just go. Yeah, he really did not come up with a good name. Oh, right. The name. Johnson, they call me. Mr. Johnson. Damn. My first name is Mr. These tracks look in order. He mapped areas for invasion, Mexican weapons storage areas and the size and readiness of units, but it was all scrapped. Instead of invading all of Mexico, the US decided to just invade Vera Cruz, where it learned weapons were headed. Smedley helped lead a force that held the city for six months when it was over. He was given the Medal of Honor, which he then gave back as he said he didn't deserve it. And then

they ordered him to take it. So he took it. Yeah, you're too honorable if you're returning the Medal of Honor. They're like, I'm the, you are getting a second one for what you've just done. Far too honorable. Double Medal of Honor. Oh, no, I don't want those. Give him four. Four medals of honor. You think you're too fucking honorable for these medals? Here comes six. Jesus, no. Shut the medals down his throat. Pin him on his face. Pin him to him. In 1915, he was sent to Haiti, where he basically kicked the shit out of Haitian rebels. He ended up taking all the forts held by them, the last one by hand-to-hand combat that

lasted for 20 minutes. For this, he received his second Medal of Honor. Okay, so he starts off as kind of a wet noodle, but now he's just the fucking badass. He's the craziest badass ever. He's just going into countries just fucking shit up. Yeah, sick. Yeah, sick. Can't see a 104 degree fever. Yeah. He's fucking busting into Haitian forts with his buddies in hand-to-hand combat. Fuck the guns. Goin' through the wall. Please take a gun, Smetley. So he received his second Medal of Honor. I don't want it. His eighth Medal of Honor. His 35th Medal of Honor for two things. At that point,

only one other guy had done that. So now he was on FDR's radar. Okay, he was on the FDR radar. After the RDR. After RDR. FDR was now the Assistant Secretary of the Navy. We know what he did then. We had a good old time. Well, World War... World War I had started and Smetley kept asking to go to the Western front, but was always denied. He was considered to be very brave and brilliant, but completely unreliable. Okay. He was given the rank of Brigadier General and put in charge of a camp in France that sent troops out across Europe. The camp was a mass and very muddy. Smetley had his men go get duckboards from trenches that were

no longer in use. So they would have something other than mud to sleep on. Mmm. That's pretty good. That's how you treat a war hero. Go muddin'. Fuck outta here. Why don't you go to camp mud, bud? Yeah. You wanna go west, huh? Go live in mud. Hey, war hero, you like wet dirt? Yeah. Because of this, he earned his second nickname, Old Duckboard. That's a shitty nickname. It's right on the nose. Yeah, they really nailed that one. Old Duckboard. Old Duckboard. Call him Old Non-Mud. Old... Old Hate Mud. Mud Nut. Old Non-Mudder. For his exemplary service, he was awarded both the Army Distinguished Service Medal and Navy Distinguished Service Medal and the

French Order of the Black Star. Okay. After the war, he became commanding general at Base Quantico, Virginia. During a training exercise in Western Virginia in 1921, he was told by a local farmer that Stonewall Jackson's arm was buried nearby. To which Smedley replied, Bosh, I will take a squad of Marines and dig up that spot to prove you wrong. He did, and he found the arm buried in a box. Oh God. He then replaced the wooden box with a metal one and reburied the arm. Awkward! Oh shit, that is an arm. No! So he was right. Well, the only thing left to do is put it in a stronger box. Yeah, let's put it nicer. Yeah, the guy was like, no, we don't need to

put it in a metal box. It's fine. Leave it there. He's like, no, come on. The whole fun part was it was in a wooden box. It's just gonna be fast. This was just gonna be a quick thing. In 1923, the newly elected mayor... By the way, why was his arm buried there? Well, he probably got cut off during a war or a fight, and then they were just like, what do we do with this? We're not gonna carry it around, right? They're not gonna be like, there's the arm! Still super crazy to bury an arm. Well, that are you just throwing a ditch, so they just bury it, I guess. And it's a famous arm, right? It's not like some, you know, common man's arm. It's not a

schlub arm. It's a fucking quality arm. Alright. See, trade with respect. It's gotta be funny that if like other arms show up. Give it its own little arm casket. Yeah. Other arms? Yeah, there's an arm priest. Yeah, just an arm priest. Yeah. In 1923, the newly elected mayor of Philadelphia, W. Freeland Kendrick, asked Smedley to leave the Marines to become director of public safety in charge of the city's police and fire departments. Oh shit. Smedley passed because the city was so corrupt. Okay. Then president Calvin Coolidge asked him to do it, so Smedley agreed. It seems like his nickname should be

Ask Twice. Double ask Smedley. Yeah. Smedley immediately ordered raids on more than 900 speakeasies in Philadelphia. Shit. Ordered the arrests of corrupt police officers. Oh boy. And cut the roofs off their cars so they couldn't sleep on the job. Wow. What? I mean, is there not? That's a little bit much. That's a lot. That's a bit much. That's when someone's like, well, that's gonna cost a lot of money, Smedley. Take it off. All righty. You know any arms around here that are buried? What? Arms. Let's get out of here. At one point, he said that he would promote the first officer to kill a bandit and stated, quote, I don't

believe the, I don't believe there's a single bandit notch on a policeman's guns in this city. Go out and get some. And bandits are just criminals? Yeah, just go kill some people. Cool. All right. Yeah, that's why you do. That's why you don't want to double up on the Medal of Honor. He's Iron Man now. When Magistrate Edward Carney complained that Smedley only harassed the drinking establishments of the working class, Smedley responded by ordering raids on the Ritz Carlton, the Bellevue Stratford and other expensive hotel. He stripped the Bellevue of its dance lysis and began Hadlock proceedings, proceedings against the Ritz

Carlton. Smedley also gave a weekly radio address in which he frequently s'more, s'more, and in which he frequently swore, causing many citizens to suggest his behavior was inappropriate. Now listen to me, you motherfuckers. We're gonna go out there. All the cunts. All right. Every one of you cocksuckers out there is looking to get fucked up. We're gonna put it right up your ass. We're gonna come down there and take the boot and shove it up your fucking ass. Anyway, this was brought to you by Winston's. Winston's cigarettes, the smoothest smoke. Put it in your asshole. Put it in your asshole and suck it, then barf it out of your fucking mouth.

Yes, shit, fucks. You piece of garbage. Someone ought to piss on a piece of shit like you fuck nuts. Anyway, everything's safe. Anyway. Mayor Kendrick said to the press, quote, I had the guts to bring general, I had the guts to bring general Butler to Philadelphia and I had the guts to fire him. Okay. Sort of a fucked up. Yeah. Hey, I was smart enough to, I was brave enough to bring a fucking asshole in here and I can also fire that fucking asshole. That's his perfect filly. I feel like you just countered out. I won. No, you. I made a good decision followed by another good decision. I feel like we're at like minus two. No, we're plus two. In

December 1925, the mayor fired Smedley, but some of the public thought he was doing a good job and protested. Then the president got involved and again, pushed Smedley to stay another year. Wow. So he did. On January 1st, Smedley's leave from the Marines ended and he was told to report back to San Diego. In a public speech when leaving, he said, quote, I have been fighting in a battle where the head of the show was disloyal and everything was crooked. The mayor hasn't bossed me. He could fire me, but he can't bluff me. I've still got my self respect. Jesus. So wait, where he's in San Diego? No, but when he's leaving

Philadelphia, he told me to press that. That was his parting. Those are his parting words. Yeah, like a slightly baby-ish. Right. Well still. The mayor hasn't bossed me. And later he commented that cleaning up Philadelphia was worse than any battle he was ever in. Sounds about right. Smedley was appointed the commander of the Marine Expeditionary Force in China. How old is he now? So it's 1931, so he is, he was born in 1881. So 50? Okay. So he's getting up there, right? Smedley in an interview told an anecdote about, in January 1931, Smedley in an interview told an anecdote about Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini. Oh boy. Mussolini

anecdotes some of the funniest. I have a funny story about me and Hitler actually. You'll get a kick out of this one. Adolf was quite the prankster. This one's a hoot. This one's a hoot. The story told to him, the story was told to Smedley by an unarmed, unnamed friend, unarmed. A man without arms. You know they buried him right over there. Why? It was told to him by a friend that he wouldn't name, who had been taken by Mussolini for a high speed car ride through the Italian countryside. In the course of which the director ran down a child and did not even bother to slow down. I'm sorry. So, wait. Classic Benito! Is that the

whole story? Yeah, I mean. The story is that he was in the car when Mussolini killed the kid and he didn't care. Basically. Quote, my friend screamed as the child's body was crushed under the wheels of the machine. Mussolini put a hand on my friend's knee and said, it was only one life. What is one life in the affairs of the state? Wow, that is, I mean, I know he's fucked up, but that's so fucked up for a fucked up guy. He's hitting a kid and being like, come on, don't worry about it. Hey, what? He's like a meatball now. Don't worry. He's a fine. Look, he's running back there. Look at him. He's a fine. Look at him. He'll roll it

down to the hill. He's a cutie key. Oh, look at him laying all flat and taking a nap on his to bur- Anyway. Okay. I'm gonna sleep like a baby. You like a football? Hey! Hey! In the car, like, what the fuck is going on right now? It's happening. I am Benito. Okay. You want the fresh shaved parmesan? Benito. What the hell's happening? Open this door. Get the fuck out. By the way, speeding in a car at that time was going what, like, 51? Yeah, probably. Yeah. The Italian government protested. Rome Newspapers announced Smedley's accusations as insolent and ridiculous and Mussolini issued a categorical denial. I have never taken an American on a road trip car around

Italy, neither have I run over a child, a man, or a woman. Oh, my God. And a meatball. I like the lead. I never taken an American on a car a trip. What the fuck? Why are they taking an American on a car ride? I would take a woman. They are back to eat the driver. You're fucking disgusting. Go left. Go right. Don't hit that kid. What's that? Is that a meatball? Benito's eyes are just meatballs. Benito, you have a rare condition where you're going to see peripheral meatballs for maybe the rest of your life. Anytime you start, you're like, I would never do that. Don't worry about that. It's right in meatballs over there. But anyway, like I was saying, hey, USC of the meatball. Look, I don't want to freak anyone out

and I know that I have a condition, but there's a lot of meatballs over there falling. They're about sick of the falling. The second estate issued a formal apology to Mussolini for, quote, discourteous and unwarranted utterances by a commission officer of this government on active duty. Smiley was placed under arrest and ordered court-martialed by President Hoover, Jesus Christ, but was eventually released without charge. Smiley then retired from active duty on October 1st, 1931. Yeah, I get that. I mean, if you've done all that and then you're just like, yeah, hey, real quick, I want time Mussolini killed the kid when I was in the car with him. And then they're like, get the fuck out of here. Give us back your medals. You are un-honorable. You are

dishonorable. You are. You are. There's no honor on you, sir. Oh, we're talking about the King Meatball like that. We should not be calling him that. What do you mean? Stop calling him King Meatball. That's what it is. King Meatball, we apologize. You're humble. You're humble subject before you. You are the king of clumped meat. Hey, just so you know, I am no longer a King Meatball. I am a King of spicy meatball. Okay. By the way, there's a bunch of meatballs falling right behind you. Hey, Hitler, look behind you there. It looks like a meatball. I think it is a planet for a world domination that sounds great. But I got to warn you, they're going to be able to eat it in the concentration camps because there's a ton of meatballs falling right in there right

now. And I'm like, I freak it out. Now he's becoming like a Trevolta dictator. It's totally Trevolta. It's just so weird. Yeah, it's like crazy. Like there's a bunch of meatballs falling back in there. What are you doing? There's so many of meatballs. Man, I don't know if your plan is going to work. Let's go out on the Brooklyn Bridge. He was now a veteran. Okay, sorry, I forgot what we were in reality. Okay, Smith is now a veteran. The adjusted Compensation Act of 1924 gave a bonus to each World War One veteran. The one hiccup was that the bonus was not to be paid until 1945. Okay. A veteran named Walter Waters left post war France in 1919 and tried to get different jobs like a mechanic car salesman farmhand and baker's helper. When the Great Depression hit,

he was left unemployed in Portland and he became fixated on the idea of marching to Washington and demanding immediate payment of veterans bonuses. Yeah. So he gathered people up. And by the end of June, 1932, 20,000 veterans were camped out in Washington, DC. They were known as the bonus army. Yeah, I like the sound of them. Right? Yeah, we want a bonus. Yeah, give us that money. Army Chief of Staff General, I said general because that's what he became later Army Chief of Staff Douglas MacArthur was convinced that the March was a communist conspiracy to undermine the government of the United States. Hey, anyone want to hit at this? And we fucking paranoid. Jesus, looking all out there for money. We said we'd give them. Well, this is copy written all over

it. And he thought that quote, the movement was actually far deeper and more dangerous than an effort to secure funds from a nearly depleted federal treasury. Treasury's running out of money. Oh, look at the people starving who want a bonus. We don't have any. Sausalito News, June 10th, 1932. The gathering of the bonus army here is riveting public attention on the effects of unemployment. Yet the visit is not stimulating congressional action on bonus legislation. Perfect. The sentiment at the Capitol is that the nation's finances do not permit the expenditure of hundreds of millions to veterans at this time. Many visitors could not actually qualify as a war servicemen but have come for the excitement. Wow. That that last

part seems like total hardship. Yeah. Yeah. It seems like how you're trying to wrap up a story. A lot of peeps are just hanging. Yeah. A lot of guys are just here for the good time in barbecue. And the meatball. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Sausalito News, June 24th, 1932. The refusal of the bonus army to evacuate their camps here is of concern in political circles. The two political parties want to avoid the subject as a campaign issue. Yet the presence of the former soldiers in Washington during the electioneering season will ever be an unpleasant reminder to their friends back home. The shabby appearance of the men in makeshift camps on the streets of the Capitol accentuates our economic depression more than all claims of campaigners.

There's a tragic side to this mobilization scene, something that arouses a nation's sympathy and more votes are swayed from the heart than by political conviction. Also, Mussolini dies trying to eat meatballs on balcony. It's so weird when you hear that shit, though, because it is just like it is. It's the same. It's just like the we're now like living in the the roided up version of that where it's like it's there's no 1945, but it's still you have the disenfranchised veterans coming back. Totally fucked. We don't take care of it. Totally fucked. And politicians are like, hey, look over here. Look at my keys. Well, you're like, yeah, what about all those people that you

said don't raise taxes? Really? What about all the guys who we can't pay for the guys that went to war? Listen, you can't put coal out of business right now. That'd be foolish. Let the planet go to shit. Then we'll wait. What's my plan? Oh, I don't have. Wait, what the fuck is my plan? Hey, look, people. Oh my God, look at all those meatballs. Smedley Butler, supporting the cause, found himself in front of the sea of 20,000 veterans. Old gimlet, I addressed the marchers amidst a storm of applause, describing the events at the event as quote, the greatest demonstration of Americanism we've ever had. On July 28th, the U.S. Attorney General ordered the veterans removed from all government property, Washington

police were sent in there, but they were met with resistance. Shots were fired and two veterans were wounded and later died. President Herbert Hoover then ordered the army to clear the veterans campsite. That's gonna be so weird. Yeah, to be like, get out of here, you fellow fucking guys that army saved everybody awkward. Douglas MacArthur commanded the infantry and Calvary supported by six tanks. Boy, I just, it's honestly like right now, it's what would happen right now. They go, well, get the tanks out and kill them. That's very Tiananmen Square. Yeah. The bonus army marchers with their wives and children were driven out. So they brought their families to and their shelters and

belongings were all burned. 55 veterans were injured and 135 were arrested. Because of Hoover's response to the bonus army, Smedley Butler endorsed FDR for the 1932 election. Yeah. Within days of his inauguration, President Roosevelt called Congress into a special session and introduced 15 major pieces of legislation. One of those was the Emergency Banking Act of 1933. In the event of natural calamity, riot, instruction, war, or other emergency conditions occurring in any state, whether caused by acts of nature or of man, the comptroller of the currency may designate any day a legal holiday for the National Banking Associations. The act expanded presidential authority during a banking crisis. The Great Depression was considered an emergency

and a four-day banking holiday was declared that shut down the banking system because of run on banks. Then using the Banking Act on June 5, 1933, the United States went off the gold standard. Congress enacted a joint resolution nullifying the right of creditors to demand payment in gold. Up until this point, if you had a dollar, you could take it to any government agency anytime you wanted and trade it in for gold. Okay. Right. It seems really fucking stupid. Well, what was the, I mean, I don't fully know what like, how did the gold, I mean, so we're off the gold standard. So now we're just on a, we just live on a dollar currency,

right? We just live like the world's currency is attached to the dollar. So, yeah, the gold for now, you can print more money and money's more flexible, whereas gold isn't. Right. So, isn't that an argument? Isn't that, but in a way, that's, it's been the Achilles heel of the dollar standard. Maybe, but it has also stopped us from bottoming out at times, completely. True. But we're going to get there through the dollar though. They were more, they were more, they were far more like depressions and recessions. Right. Like bad times. Right. On the gold standard than after. It was like, basically like the economy was cocaine. At this point. Tremendous highs with tremendous lows.

Yeah. I mean, there have been some bad times, but it's not as bad. And like the last one we had was all because of the banks. Yes. They just did it. Like it doesn't, it had nothing to do with the gold standard. Well, what was good about that one too is that $860 billion went missing. Whatever. Yeah, either way. Okay. So now banks were forbidden to pay out gold or export it, increasing the amount of gold held by the Federal Reserve, which would in turn increase its power to inflate the monetary supply. The US Chamber of Commerce strongly opposed leaving the gold standard and to top it off, Roosevelt's new deal brought a stack of corporate regulations, but it went well. Newspaper account

from the Eagle Rock advisor with the announcement that the United States is off the gold standard. The world has seen a revival in this country that reminds one of the some of the boondates prior to 1929. As was to be expected, it was reflected first on the stock exchange and in the grain markets almost overnight. The wealth of the country as represented in stock prices and bonds has increased by many billions of dollars. Jesus. Yeah. FDR was like, uh-huh. Yeah. What I tell you girl? What's up, bitch? Vessels which have a long been laid up for lack of cargo are being returned to service. No people in the world are better buyers than Americans since the United States went off the gold standard. Much advantage has been equalized in favor of American products.

Despite the doomsayers, the price of gold remained at its highest price in history at $33 and 76 per ounce. In December 1933 in a radio address, Samuel Dixon, a congressional representative from New York told the American public that he had unearthed evidence of German infiltration and that the Nazi government was the most dangerous threat to American democracy that had ever existed. This led to the investigation of Nazi propaganda activities and investigation of certain other propaganda activities, special committee on un-American activities. Good. We're going to call out the special committee on un-American activities. An acronym. An acronym would be fun. Okay. The I-N-P-A-I-C-O-P-A-S-C-U-A-A.

The In-P-I-C-O-P-A-S-C. Sounds a little German to me. I knew it. When you put it like the acronym, it sounds like it's freaking German. So Congress had a new committee, investigations equally between U.S. Nazi sympathizers and a range of left-wing groups, sorry, investigations, including communist trade unions and veteran organizations. Now they're looking at- So now they're looking for Nazis- Everything. Right. And now they're commies across the board. In the veteran, but they're looking like through the veterans. Yeah, fucking dirty, dirty vets. Yeah.

Because of this activity with the bonus army, because of his activity with the bonus army, the committee came across General Smiley Butler's name as the leader of a veterans group possibly planning a coup. A coup on what? The American government? Well, back in July 1933, Smiley had been visited by a pair of gentlemen. A Packard limousine came up into my yard and two men got out. This limousine was driven by a chauffeur. They came into the house and introduced themselves. One said his name was Bill Doyle, who was then the department commander of the American Legion in Massachusetts. The other said his name was Jerry Maguire.

Famous sports agent to kill the good and junior. Have you seen my manifesto? Yeah. Renee Zellweger's behind him like, I hung it on the line for him. Maguire was a $100 a week bond salesman for Grace and Murphy and company and former state Legion commander of the Connecticut American Legion. They'd come to urge Smiley to run for the office of national commander of the American Legion, an influential organization of veterans. There was a convention for the Legion coming up and the men wanted Smiley to take part in it. They said they didn't like the Legion administration and the way it treated soldiers.

Smiley declined the opportunity. They better have asked again because that's when he's in. Twice. You got to go with the follow up. That's why they call him two times Smiley. Yeah. Well, would you maybe you do it? Yeah, okay. Yeah. Yes. Yes, I will. Jerry Maguire made several subsequent visits. During the next visit, the plan... Show me the Smidley! During the next visit, the plan had changed. Now they wanted Smidley to bring 300 men to the convention. He was to place the men in the audience and at some point they would begin to cheer and start a stampede and demand Smidley give a speech. I said make a speech about what?

Oh, they said we have one. We will leave it here with you to read over and you see if you can get those fellows to come. Oh boy. The speech was written by John Davis, J.P. Morgan Jr.'s attorney. It urged the convention to adopt the resolution that the U.S. return to the gold standard. Maguire tried to convince Smidley by saying they didn't want veterans to be paid with paper money. They should be paid in gold. Nice chunks of gold. Look, we need to get back on the gold standard. We need to give gold to vets. But how's my plan? But it's going so well. Gold to vets. No. You listening? Gold! Smidley said... Show me the gold! Smidley said if the vets wanted to go, they couldn't even afford to go. To stay for five days and come back, it would cost them $150.

And Maguire said, well, we will pay that. We have friends. We'll get the money. Smidley said he did not believe it. The next time Maguire showed up, he presented a bank deposit book and showed 42,000 in deposits. In another meeting, it had 64,000 in it. Okay. Maguire said he represented the committee for a sound dollar whose primary purpose was to pressure the president to reinstate the gold standard. He implied the organization had the support of several political leaders and the financial backing of some of the country's most affluent individuals and successful corporations. They wanted the vets to get their bonuses, he said. Sure. What? Sure. It's just a bunch of corporate guys and rich guys who want to

take care of the vets. They always do. Yeah, that's true. They've always had good hearts, those corporations. Always. But Smidley had long lost faith in the American Legion. The Legion, over time, had turned into a strike-breaking outfit. Sure, the average vet thought the American Legion was patriotic, but in truth, it was controlled by bankers. Bankers who financed it to the beginning and basically pushed to turn into a strike-breaking outfit. He believed the leaders of the Legion. I have a great strike-breaking outfit. Oh my God. It's a dry ceddo with a cape on it, but then I also have a spear. Oh my God, that's fantastic. Yeah, and I sort of have like a Phantom of the Opera half mask on. Yes, I love the mask. It's just

very nice and I'm very theatrical about when I wear the outfit and I'm breaking up the strike. Yeah, I have a stripe suit. Oh, with the sequins. Yeah, with sequins, eagle wings on the back, which I've always loved. And I swing a mace and I wear a pig mask. Yeah, I've been meaning to talk to you about yours. Is it too crazy? I don't think so. Okay, I just want to make sure. I just want to make sure. So, when he asked McGuire for the name of one of those wealthy individuals who were financially backing the plan, Mr. Johnson, he was told Grayson Murphy. Who was that? McGuire answered, he's the man who underwrote the formation of the American Legion for 125,000. He underwrote it, paid for the fieldwork of organizing it, and had not gotten all of it back

yet. Okay. It's an interesting phrase. Yeah, not gotten all of it back yet. Yeah, that's a fun way to put it. I invested in this. What do I get? It'll come. I thought it was just a thing to help out the vets. Right. I thought it was just like a right. Right. Right. I misspoke. But what do you mean by get it back? You know, what am I going to get my fucking money back? What? I don't understand. I mean, I want, I hope the vets do great. Right. I want them to do great. Right. And I want to do great when I get my goddamn money back. He's on our side. He wants to see the soldiers cared for. Smedley didn't commit one way or the other, but wanted to meet one of the financiers. Robert Sterling Clark came to visit. Clark was known as the millionaire lieutenant. He had a

lot of money. He was the heir to the singer sewing machine fortune. Man, that's a fucking line for a bar right there. Girl. Girl, you know it. Let me buy you a drink on the sewing machine. Clark said, you understand how we are fixed. I got 30 million. I did not want to lose it. I am willing to spend half of the 30 million to save the other half. If you go out and make this speech in Chicago, I am certain they will adopt the resolution and that will be one step toward the return to gold to have the soldiers stand up for it. We can get the soldiers to go out in great bodies to stand up for it. So all the rich people, all the rich people think that they're off the gold standards. They're all going to fucking lose their ass. Yeah. But then their plan is ridiculous.

What are you talking about? So the plan is, the plan is that Smedley, who we basically we don't know if he's a good public speaker. He could be like a sitcom character and get real nervous when he publicly speaks. I have a feeling he's a good speaker. Okay. So he says, count a lot. Yeah. Okay. Well, yeah. Through his radio addresses, we've learned that he's got a sailor's mouth on him, shockingly. But so they're hiring him to just go there and make it seem like it's an organic, off the cuff sort of speech that he gives to 300 veterans who they've planted in the audience that will then start some sort of gold standard revolution because of this one speech. There was no YouTube. I mean, if you say it like that, it sounds dumb. It's not smart.

It's just not a good plan. I just feel like you're not describing it right. Describe it to me in the right way. No, that was right. Okay. Smedley told Clark you want to know part of it. He believed in democracy. The convention was held and the American Legion endorsed going back to the gold standard. Shocking. Smedley read about it in the paper and was amused. He didn't hear from anyone for many months, but then on the 22nd of August 1934, Jerry Maguire returned. Jesus Christ. He'd just been on a fact-finding trip to Europe. He'd gone to study the role veterans play in the setup of Mussolini's fascist government. Mussolini, who'd gone quite bad, gone quite bad with meatball eye.

You see those, right? Yes, Benito. Yes. Of course, we see him. Open your umbrellas. You're going to get it covered. All I see is a meatball. Look at him. He's got a spaghetti. Make it make more sense. Jerry Maguire discovered that the veterans were the backbone to Mussolini's fascist government. He then went to Germany to observe what Hitler was doing and discover the same thing. This guy went on quite the fact-finding mission. He's just checking stuff out. Yeah. Okay. You know, I hit the big two, Italy and Germany. See what they're doing. Fun stuff. Good stuff. Maguire arranged to meet Smedley in an empty hotel restaurant. There he dropped all

the bullshit about getting vets bonuses and working for the soldiers. He said his financial backers aimed to assemble an army of a half a million disgruntled veterans born out of the seeds of the original bonus army. And he said the group would like Smedley to be the leader of this force. They would follow the plan of Mussolini. They would pay the vets well. We've got $300 million to start on the line, Maguire said. And we can get 300 million. Sorry, we've got 3 million to start and we can get 300 million if we need it. Smedley said, what about the president? I'm for maintaining democracy. Maguire said, now, did it ever occur to you that the president is overworked? We might have an assistant president

like an AP. Do we have an assistant president? No, no, like another one. Like a third vice president. Not the vice president, like an AP. An assistant president. An assistant to the president. What? That's the vice president. No, it's the AP. No, hear me out. I'm not. He wanted to say that it did not take any constitutional changes to authorize another cabinet official, somebody to take over the details of the office, take them off the president's shoulders. It does when it's the second guy. He mentioned that the position would be a secretary of general affairs, sort of like a super secretary. Well, that's the title you got to go with right there. Super sec. So this is a good plan. You just get another like an AP super sec. Well, I like that he I like that he's dropped

all the bullshit. He's like, look, you're right. It's about money. Now, can we talk? Let's talk about the super sec. Come on. You know, the American people will swallow that. We've got the newspapers. We will start a campaign that the president's health health is failing. Everybody can tell that by looking at him and the American people will fall for it because they're dumb. He's right on that. He then said they would pay a monthly wage to all those vets who are now suffering. Smedley showed some enthusiasm for the arrangement and invited J. McGuire to talk to his friend, Paul French. McGuire told French that all unemployed men would be put in military barracks under forced labor. Sorry. I'm sorry. Fine print. What was that? It's just a simple plan.

If you don't have a job, right? So you got to go to a forced labor camp camp camp camp. You just came back from Germany? Yeah. So there's these camps where you put people who can't work and you put them in there and then you make them. Sorry. You're calling these camps? Yeah. Right. Okay. Like, like BMW is using them. And so we can do that with like Ford. Sorry. You're calling, right. Okay. So these are work camps for unemployed veterans but they can leave the camp. I mean, there's no reason. They have work now. They'll be working. Hmm. That's interesting. For free. For sorry. Free. There's no, yeah, it's for free. Just trust me. Okay. Sure. He also hinted that weapons would be furnished by the Remington Arms Company in which

the DuPont family owned a controlling interest. There's that delicious name. He continually discussed the need of a man on a white horse as he called it, a dictator who had come galloping in. A man with eagle wings and a pig mask and a red eyes. He said that was the only way though the threat of armed force and the use of a group of organized veterans to save the capitalistic system. In August, McGuire said it was all coming into place. You watch in two or three weeks, you will see it come out in the paper. There'll be big fellas in it. This is to be the background of it. The papers will come out with it. He said that it would all be a society to maintain the Constitution and so forth. And in about two weeks, the American Liberty League appeared.

Susley the news, August 34, 1934. The need for adequate explanations home, the need for adequate explanations struck home when the newly created American Liberty League popped across the political skies. Allegedly nonpartisan, the league is manned by conservative Democrats and Republicans for the purpose of turning the spotlight on the economic activities of the federal government. They're cooperating with Republican leaders probably in the interest of millions who have invested in industrial enterprise whose earnings and security they feel endangered by a drift toward radical government policies. Regardless of their underlying motives, the new outfit will bid for public opinion with counter propaganda to the federal publicity force just like rival salesmen.

The makeup of the league's executive committee was designed to demonstrate its bipartisan nature. It included John Davis, attorney for J.P. Morgan, Al Smith, former Democratic candidate for president, wealthy businessman Irene Dupont, two New York Republicans. Is that a man named Irene? Yeah, Irene maybe. Yeah, I'm not Irene. Irene. Yeah, that's a terrible name. The state's former governor and representative James W. Oddsworth, the moving spirit behind the organization was John Jacob Oraskub, a former chairman of the Democratic National Committee and former director of General Motors and a board member of Dupont. Also Prescott Bush, grandfather of George Bush. And this is their bipartisan, yep. I think it's just which rich people.

Well, it sounds exactly like what you would hear today where they would just be like, here's the list of people who are going to figure out how to make the poor rich. This group of elite rich people who hate the poor. Full-time organizers established league chapters in 26 colleges and universities. Hundreds of pamphlets were printed and written and printed and several million copies distributed. A Speaker's Bureau was established and the league sponsored many nationwide radio addresses, all echoing Dupont's demand that quote, all government regulation of business should be abolished. It really is just the exact like that. Well, that's just what you hear like

all the time. It's like we want to stop regulating them. Let business be business. Come on, let them pour all the shit in bonds. When does a corporation betray you? Let them police themselves. What have they ever done bad? They're good. They like people who don't make money. Yeah. And then if you don't like them, you just don't pay for this stuff. Yeah. From its 31-room office, man by 50 people, press releases printed constant attacks on the New Deal, relief, self-security, and the proposed 30-hour work week. Most of the newspaper articles, most of the newspapers around the country agreed printing releases are carrying favorable articles of the league's positions. So it's kind of exactly what Jerry McQuire said. Yeah.

Yeah. Then Smidler Butler called the press conference. A crowd of journalists surrounded him as he addressed the nation. Instead of saying he was going to take over that as the fashion leader of the US, he told reporters the details of the secret pro fashion plot. Oh, yes. And describe their principal players. Butler's friend, Paul French. McQuire was like, sorry, what's he saying? Is anyone here already saying up there? Move a little closer because it sounds like he's saying some crazy fucking shit. Yeah. Butler's friend, Paul French, turns out was actually an undercover reporter for the Philadelphia Record and New York Evening Post. The two men testified before the House

Committee on Un-American Activities disclosing all they had gathered from McQuire. Wow. Veterans of Foreign Wars National Commander James Van Zant also testified stating that he had also been approached to be the dictator to lead the takeover of the United States. Jesus. But why are the wealthy men named all denied, why are the wealthy men all named, denied involvement in anything? Shocking. First I've heard of it. Come on now. I think things are going good. They called the... One more money. Me? Why? I don't like money. They called it a joke and a publicity stunt and they... Smidley wanted just the publicity. He loves the pub. You know. They even publicly questioned the sanity of Smidley, accusing of being a drunk,

but McGuire's testimony did not help. It was self-contradictory and it crippled his credibility. Ultimately, the House Investigative Committee, Un-American Committee, concluded that there was compelling evidence of a plot. Yeah. On January 15, 1935, the committee submitted to the House of Representatives its final report verifying the testimony of General Smidley Butler. In the last few weeks of the committee's official life, it received evidence showing that certain persons had made an attempt to establish a fascist organization in this country. There is no question but that these attempts were discussed, were planned, and might have been placed in execution when and if the financial backers deemed it expedient. Expedient. This committee received

evidence from Major General Smidley Butler. He testified before the committee as to conversations with one Gerald C. McGuire in which the latter is alleged to have suggested the formation of a fascist army under the leadership of General Butler. McGuire denied these allegations under oath, but your committee was able to verify all the pertinent statements made by General Butler, with the exception of the direct statement suggesting the creation of the organization. However, this was corroborated in the correspondence of McGuire with his principal Robert Sterling Clark of New York City, while McGuire was abroad studying the various forms of veteran's organizations of fascist character. So it's all true, according to the House committee, that these guys tried to

set up a fascist American, just the Duponts and all the rich people, just them though, nothing, no one else to worry, the Bush and Dupont and all the good families. The press was quick to pick up the story, referring to the conspiracy as a quote plot without plotters, which failed to emerge in any alarming proportion. A handful of papers took the story seriously, but most newsmen ridiculed the notion that their bosses' close acquaintances would participate in a takeover of the country. Criminal charges were brought against no one, and the collection of prominent men implicated in the plot were immediately excused from testifying. In fact, all mention of their names was scrubbed from the committee's public report. One month after the final report was issued,

Corsica, Corsicana Daily Sun, March 25, 1935. Gerald McGuire, bond salesman for a New York brokerage house whose name was linked recently by General Smedley, Butler, with an alleged fascist plot to seize the U.S. government, died last night in a New Haven hospital at 37 years old. Dr. Frank Tull, an attending physician, attributed the death of the bond salesman to pneumonia and other complications. Smedley Butler continued to fight for the veteran's bonus, and FDR continued to fight against it. On January 27, 1936, the Senate overrode FDR's veto on paying the bonus. It was given in the form of bonds. The heads of veterans associations said they would push the vets to hold on to their bonds until 1945. 80 percent of the bonds were redeemed.

Yeah, I bet. Now, guys, don't. If you don't have to, don't. And off they go. They're all cashed. From a 1936 letter from William Dodd, the U.S. ambassador to Germany, to Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a clique of U.S. industrials is help bent to bring a fascist state to supplant our democratic government and is working closely with the fascist regime in Germany and Italy. I've had plenty of opportunity in my post in Berlin to witness how close some of our American ruling families are to the Nazi regime. A prominent executive of one of the largest corporations told me point blank that he would be ready to take definite action to bring fascism to America if President Roosevelt continued his progressive policies. No action was taken.

Smaley Butler wrote a book called Wars a Racket. Quote, beautiful ideas were painted for our boys who were sent out to die. There was the war to end wars. This was the war to make the world safe for democracy. No one told them that dollars and cents were the real reason. No one mentioned to them as they marched away that they're going and they're dying would meet huge war profits. No one told these American soldiers that they might be shot down by bullets made by their own brothers in America. No one told them that the ships on which they were going to cross might be torpedoed by submarines built with the United States patents. They were just told it was to be a glorious adventure. Thus having stuffed patriotism down their throats it was decided to make them help

pay for war too. So we gave them the large salary of $30 a month. All that they had to do for this sum was to leave their dear ones behind, give up their jobs, lie in swampy trenches, eat canned willy and kill, kill, kill and be killed. So he was not a big fan of war at that point. Do you have any canned willy? I don't. I would just love a can of willy right now. It's actual willy. That's why you shouldn't name your kid Will. Wait, what do you mean? They'll put anybody who's named Will. Oh god. They put in cans and they send them to troops. So Will Anderson's living on it. Yeah, no, they're just like there's a guy on the street is like, so your name's Bill, but I mean, no, no, no, it's Bill. No, on my bar, on my bar. Yeah, yeah,

but it's from, it's a, it's from William. Grab him boys. To ride from William. Get him. Throw him in the willy van. Put him in a can. Put him in the willy van can. This is good Will. Was this an Anderson? Jim 26, 1940. Major General Smetley. I'm not good today. Major General Smetley Butler died in the Naval Hospital. Old Gimlet Eye succumbed to a gallbladder and liver ailment. At the time of his death, he was the most decorated US Marine in history. And by the end of his career, Butler had received 16 medals, five for heroism. He's one of 19 men to receive the Medal of Honor twice. After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1994, two researchers went through an assortment of KGB dossiers. Oh boy. There they found the codename Crook. Oh boy. Crook was the name the Russians gave

to their Soviet spy, Congressman Samuel Dixon, chairman of the House Special Committee on Un-American Activities. Oh Jesus Christ. The Soviets eventually dropped him from the payroll in 1940 when he failed to win a seat on the new Un-American Activities Committee. Yeah, that's a big, that's a problem. I was looking into communism. Dixon, Dixon then served as a New York judge until he died in 1954. Oh God. Jesus. You always got to put a nice chair in the top, don't you? Oh, by the way, this guy, the world's biggest asshole. Anyway, how fucking great is that the guy running the committee? Yeah, that's crazy. This is fucking Soviet spy. Yeah. Well, what it is, is it's also like, you just, it's just a symptom of

the world we live in that people want to take advantage of, for their own profit and benefit whenever they can. It's just interesting to watch how it continually happens. And I think we live at the time now where it's been achieved. Oh, completely. Also, I'll be at the Imprava Sunday at 930, Sunday night, 930 Imprav. But yeah, it's fucking crazy. But in a lot of people still think this is not real, but with the House Committee's report and then the KGB thing is not real, or the actual whole fascist movement. The whole fascist day over, but with the report from the House Committee and the the telegram from the ambassador is pretty fucking damning. Well, also, it's like, you got to factor into there the amount of like, you know, throw you off

the scent tactics that are just going to be in anything like that, because. And why wouldn't the rich want to take over the fucking country? Oh, Jesus Christ. Are you kid like Prescott? Yeah, we're supposed to be on the side of Prescott Bush, who was like a Nazi. Yeah. No, but it is always it's just this group of fucking elite jackoffs who are like Monsanto. It's just this group of fucking. They're good. They're good. They're good people. Oh, sorry. That's right. I forgot they sponsor the show. Shout out to Monsanto. Monsanto, guys. They got the seeds. Nothing will kill. Monsanto breaking the back of the regular farmer by every week. Monsanto, buy it. All right. All right, bye.