The Rosenbergs' refusal to cooperate with the authorities, given the dire consequences for themselves and their children, convinced many naïve leftists that the Rosenbergs must have been innocent, despite the evidence presented at their trial. These people were also influenced by the Communist Party's vigorous defense of the Rosenbergs, conducted through a series of fronts.

However, the evidence emerging since the Rosenbergs' trial has been damning. The now-declassified Venona files, the decrypted telegrams of Soviet agents to their Moscow masters, mention Julius on multiple occasions. They also reveal that Ethel knew about her husband's espionage, and assisted him in his work. And starting in 1997, Julius' Soviet handler, retired KGB agent Aleksandr Feklisov, described his extensive interactions with Julius; first in a PBS documentary, later in a detailed memoir. The conspiracy charges against the Rosenbergs were just.

From a terrific slam aginst the Rosenberg Industry at FrontPageMag. Here's the payoff:

Despite all his failings, I still can't feel much but pity for Robert Meeropol. Although his folks treated him to one miserable childhood, it's not surprising that he continues to defend his parents. Admitting the truth, that he was abandoned, would be far too painful. But his efforts to rehabilitate the Rosenbergs are both ahistorical and immoral, and his supporters, lacking his infamous parents, lack his excuse. Those who attempt to deny or justify the Rosenbergs' treason perpetuate a horrendous lie. Although it's been fifty years since the Rosenbergs' execution, we all would do well to remember - to remember the horrors of a century of Communism, to remember the draw their anti-Americanism still has on the neo-Communist Left, and to remember that criminal actions do have consequences, even those committed in the name of social justice.

Right on right on. Read it all. This neo-Nazi rally - sorry, "cultural event" - got a write-up in the NY Times today. Not a word, naturally, that the Rosenbergs were nguilty as charged. That might mean the US government doesn't summarily execute people for their political beliefs, and we can't have that can we?