American Rats Trivia Quiz

Answer: Father Charles Coughlin

Although his four brothers served honorably in the US Navy, Monti enlisted in the United States Air Force and became a pilot. He was a devotee of Father Coughlin, a fairly notorious radio priest who espoused strong anti-Semitic views and admired the fascist government of Germany, especially as a bulwark against communism. Monti met with Father Coughlin before deploying. Monti stole an Air Force plane and flew it to Nazi-occupied Milan where he surrendered to the German forces. He joined the Waffen-SS and worked on propaganda materials. Once it was clear that the Nazis would lose the war, Monti surrendered instead to the U.S. forces. He was initially tried for desertion and for stealing the plane but eventually his true crimes were unearthed and he pled guilty to the charges of treason and served part of his 25 year sentence until he was paroled in 1960. He attempted to have his conviction reversed, claiming to have been pressured to plead guilty. He died in 1974 after spending his remaining years leading a quiet life in Florida.

The wrong answers are all radio hosts whose careers were much more recent than WWII - Alex Jones is an American conservative host who has become notorious for espousing conspiracy theories. Al Sharpton is an American civil rights activist and radio host who has been known to make antisemitic remarks. Kenny Everett was a British radio personality (he died in 1995) who was lured from pirate radio to BBC1 but was summarily sacked, possibly for an insensitive joke, possibly for chafing against policies at the BBC.

Player pusdoc takes this tale as a warning about the dangers of radical radio hosts.

Answer: World War II

Mildred Gillars was used by Nazi Germany to broadcast Axis propaganda during World War II. She was nicknamed "Axis Sally" amongst other less savory monikers bestowed by the American soldiers who heard her broadcasts. Once the war ended, the US Attorney General sought to have "Axis Sally" apprehended; she was arrested in March of 1946. She was eventually charged with eight counts of treason but was convicted on a sole charge. She was sentenced to 10 to 30 years and was paroled after 12 years imprisonment. She died in 1988.

Player pusdoc wrote this question out of loyalty to Phoenix Rising's Red Crew.

Answer: Tokyo Rose

"Tokyo Rose" was a name bestowed by the media on a number of female broadcasters of Japanese propaganda following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Iva Toguri was in Japan prior to the attack, caring for her sick aunt. Unable to return to the USA, she accepted a position as typist and then broadcaster of "The Zero Hour" for Radio Tokyo using the name "Orphan Ann". When she returned to the USA in 1946 she was arrested and became the face of "Tokyo Rose".

She spent a year in prison before being released due to lack of evidence but the FBI renewed their investigation and a trial in 1949 found her guilty on eight counts of treason. In 1974 investigative journalists found that the FBI had badgered witnesses to obtain false testimony and in 1977 President Gerald Ford issued a pardon.

Red crew's smpdit snipped this question into shape.

Answer: Pennsylvania

The Whiskey Rebellion was an uprising of whiskey distillers and farmers in western Pennsylvania. It was a result of a whiskey excise tax passed by Congress in 1791. Government officials believed that the tax would solve the issue of national and state debt incurred during the Revolutionary War. Unfortunately, the tax hurt the small producers more than the large ones. Large whiskey producers received a break on the tax rate because they could produce larger quantities. The smaller-producing stills had to pay the maximum amount, and cash was the only acceptable form of payment.
After a few years of non-payment and local uprisings, in 1794, a revolt happened at General John Neville's farm. Neville was a war veteran and an Inspector of the Revenue. Protestors arrived at his home and demanded his accounting records. Shots were traded, and buildings burned. Military intervention became necessary to thwart the multitude of uprisings. Several suspects involved in Neville's raid were taken into custody. All were set free for different reasons except two, Philip Weigel (sometimes seen as Wigle) and John Mitchell.

Weigel and Mitchell were tried and found guilty of treason and sentenced to hang. President George Washington pardoned both on November 2, 1795. The President explained his decision during his seventh State of the Union Address in December 1795, calling on "moderation and tenderness".

Jaknginger of Phoenix Rising's Red Crew added this question to the team quiz.

Answer: Germany

Born in Germany, Max Stephan resided in Detroit, Michigan, and was a leader in his German community. He was a former member of the German National Police. He assisted an escapee from a POW camp in Ontario, Canada, in April 1942. The prisoner was Hans Peter Krug, a Nazi bomber pilot. Stephan gave Krug shelter and entertained him for several days before sending him away on a bus to Chicago. Krug was later captured in San Antonio, Texas, and returned to Michigan to testify in the case. One news article stated that Mr. Stephan was convicted mainly on Krug's testimony. Max was part of a local German social group called the "Schwaben Society." It was mentioned that several in this circle were pro-Nazi. They had a planned celebration for the Fuhrer's birthday. Also of note, Stephan sent packages to Krug while he was a prisoner.

Max Stephan was found guilty of treason and later sentenced to death by hanging. The execution was to be carried out on April 27, 1943, but President Franklin Roosevelt commuted his sentence to life in prison. He died in prison as a result of cancer in 1952.

Phoenix Rising's jaknginger aided and abetted the Red Crew with this question for the team quiz.

Answer: Navy

Born in Washington DC in 1937, Walker was arrested following a series of burglaries in 1955. He was offered the option of choosing to enlist in the military or to face jail. He entered the Navy in 1955 and eventually advanced to chief petty officer. He was stationed on the USS Andrew Jackson, a Fleet Ballistic Missile submarine, during which time he also incurred large amounts of debt, due to an unsuccessful bar venture.

In 1965 he transferred to the USS Simon Bolivar, another nuclear submarine, and he was issued with top secret clearances to work communications. In 1967, still struggling with debt, he walked into the Soviet embassy in Washington and negotiated to sell a top secret document for a lump sum and an ongoing salary. Anticipating a time when he would no longer have access to the classified information required by the Soviets, Walker enlisted an accomplice, Jerry Whitworth. Whitworth supplied top secret information to the now retired Walker, who continued to pass it to the Soviets. He also attempted to groom his children for spying.

It was only when Walker's ex -wife managed to contact the FBI and convince them to investigate that he was arrested along with his co-conspirators, and convicted, receiving a sentence of life imprisonment. He died in prison in 2014.

Red Crew's smpdit provided the information for this question.

Answer: Spain

James Wilkinson had a long and far from trouble-free career throughout his life. During the American Revolutionary War, he served in the Continental Army, changing positions until ending up a brigadier general due to embellishing his role in previous battles, which caused uproar among his peers. He was shortly asked to resign after displaying a lack of aptitude.

He travelled to New Orleans and brokered a deal with the Spanish Governor to give Kentucky a trading monopoly on the Mississippi, culminating in him swearing allegiance to the King of Spain. He continued to receive Spanish money for many years following.

As a lieutenant Colonel he began his second military career in the Northwest Indian war, though his efforts were not beneficial. He was promoted however by President George Washington, even though his 'previous' involvement with Spain was viewed with slight suspicion. He continued to pass information to the Spanish, whilst serving under President Jefferson, informing them of the Lewis and Clark Expedition and aiding them in negotiations regarding the Texas-Louisiana border. Jefferson appointed Wilkinson as Governor of Louisiana in 1805, where he became involved with Aaron Burr. Attempting to hide his own treasonous actions he exposed Burr's plans and testified against him.

Wilkinson continued to have military involvement during the War of 1812, where Spain was allied with Britain, until he was court martialed, but cleared and then discharged from the Army. He published his "Memoirs of My Own Times' in order to present himself with a good name. He became the U.S Envoy to Mexico during the Mexican War of Independence against Spain, and died in Mexico City in 1825.

His involvement in treasonous misdeeds with the Spanish were suspected whilst he was alive, but they remained unproven until 1854 when a Louisiana historian uncovered his correspondence.
Theodore Roosevelt wrote "In all our history, there is no more despicable character". Despite the condemnation there are still counties and streets in Kentucky, Georgia, New Orleans and Mississippi named after him.

Red Crew's smpdit queued to write this question.

Answer: Kansas

The "Bleeding Kansas Crisis" was a protracted series of guerilla attacks while the Kansas Territory decided whether to be pro- or anti-slavery when they joined the union. In all, 55 people died - five of them were killed by John Brown and several other men, including his sons, who marched on Pottawatomie Valley in response to a pro-slavery action in Lawrence, Kansas. Brown's devotion to abolition was motivated by his Puritan faith, the Golden Rule, and seeing all men equal as stated in the Declaration of Independence. In 1859, Brown led an attack on the armory at Harper's Ferry, intending to distribute arms to slaves in a revolt that he assumed they would welcome. He was captured by militiamen and US Marines, including Robert E. Lee. He was the first person executed for treason in the United States.

Player pusdoc admires his conviction but not his methods.

Answer: Robert Hanssen

Hanssen is serving 15 consecutive life sentences in a maximum-security prison, spending 23 hours per day in solitary confinement. Several of the double agents he fingered were executed by the Russians, so he is directly responsible for their deaths. He also provided some nuclear secrets and told the Russians about an eavesdropping tunnel the FBI built. Back in 1990, his own brother-in-law, who also worked for the FBI, reported Hanssen as a possible mole but the suspicion was not followed up. He was finally caught by recognition of his voice on a tape provided to the FBI by a disaffected KGB agent. Aldrich Ames was CIA, not FBI. Felix Bloch worked for the State Department and was suspected of espionage, but was never charged. Brian Kelley was an innocent man who was suspected of being the FBI mole before Hanssen's involvement was recognized.

Player pusdoc did not sell any state secrets to write this question for Phoenix Rising's Red Crew.

Answer: Espionage

Aldrich Ames was a US double agent who passed national secrets to the Soviets. He was charged with espionage and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Aldrich Ames (born 1941) began working for the CIA as a records analyst when he was 15-16. After high school he worked full time in clerical posts at the CIA while studying a bachelor's degree in history at university. His first field posting was in Ankara, where he targeted Soviet officers for recruitment. As his career advanced, it was noted several times that he was more suited to working in the clerical office rather than the field where his results were ordinary. He was also noted to have problems with alcohol, like his father before him. Despite the warnings and misgivings, he was given access to more sensitive information, and with the knowledge of both the CIA and FBI, he made contact with several Soviet contacts.

In 1985 he began passing US secrets to the Soviets and also identified several Soviet double agents who were passing information to the US. After some of these assets began disappearing, the CIA suspected they had a mole. A task force began searching for the CIA mole, and officers noticed that Ames was living a lifestyle inconsistent with his salary. Despite their suspicions, Ames passed two polygraph tests. They kept watch on him but it wasn't until 1993 that they began investigating him and placed him under electronic surveillance. Ames and his wife were arrested in early 1994 and charged with espionage. He received a life sentence without parole and sent to serve his sentence in the Federal Correctional Institution in Terre Haute, Indiana. His wife was sentenced to 63 months for conspiracy to commit espionage and tax evasion - Ames' crimes netted him $2.5 million that they certainly didn't declare on their tax forms.

This question was secretly passed into the quiz by Phoenix Rising's leith90.