Beer Ch 9 87/88—DESPAIR

[Thomas Eckhardt]

Am 14.11.2013 00:05, schrieb Mark Kohut:
> Misc late addition....speaking of Repubs, the label "Christer" is
> used...as in AtD.

Or in VL:

'[A]ccording to a rumor sweeping the film community, a federal grand 
jury was convening to inquire into drug abuse in the picture business 
[.... Hector assumed parallels were being drawn to back in '51, when 
HUAC came to town [....] But why right now? What did it have to do with 
Brock Vond running around Vineland like he was? and all these other 
weird vibrations in the air lately, like even some non-born-agains 
showing up at work with these little crosses, these red Christer pins, 
in their lapels [....]' (339)

David Thoreen explains in "The  President's Emergency War Powers and the 
Erosion of Civil Liberties in Pynchon's'Vineland'":

'The "red Christer pins" are another reference to FEMA and Rex-84. 
According to Ben Bradlee:

There had been considerable anxiety within the agency about the legality 
of the Rex-84 exercise. [One FEMA] official said he had never seen such 
security around any other activity inside FEMA, and that agency General 
Counsel George Jett had ordered the installation of a special metal 
security door into the hallway of the fifth floor of the FEMA building 
in Washington where all planning for Rex-84 was conducted.... FEMA 
officials with the highest security clearances had been prevented from 
going into the restricted area.... only Giuffrida, Jett, and FEMA Deputy 
Director Frank Salcedo--all of whom were inexplicably reported to have 
been wearing red Christian crosses or crucifix pins on their 
lapels--were allowed in.'

But the word does not turn up here (Ch 9 87/88), or did I miss something?

Thomas


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