("Quid coniuratio est?")
SUMMARY OF CONVERSATION WITH SHERMAN SKOLNICK February 27, 1995
I talked by phone for about 40 minutes with Sherman Skolnick of the Citizens' Committee to Clean Up the Courts. The breaking story that he and his associates are working on deals with the collapse of the Baring Brothers Bank in England. He questions, for one thing, if the bank collapsed on Friday then why did they wait until Sunday evening/Monday morning to begin breaking the story. He also notes that the bank is mentioned in one of the classic books on the "War on Drugs" -- Dope, Inc. by the editors of Executive Intelligence Review. Mr. Skolnick also finds questionable the story being fronted that the entire collapse of the bank is attributable to one sole employee who has now (conveniently) disappeared.
I asked as to the recent alleged threats to his person and liberty allegedly made by a Mr. Parshall of the U.S. Justice Department. He reports that he has become used to such threats over his 30 years of investigating government corruption but that in this case the threats were particularly vehement -- enough to cause concern. However, as stated, he notes that he has become used to such threats. For example, he stated that he has been thrown in jail for contempt of court so many times that he has become quite used to it. He also gave a clue to alleged Justice Department operations in his portrayal of how they threaten you, "They don't say they are going to break your legs with a baseball bat. They just begin to emphasize some things." So, for example, regarding Mr. Skolnick's allegations concerning Judge Schwartz (as is being documented in Conspiracy Nation), Mr. Parshall, according to Mr. Skolnick, was screaming that he was going to inform Judge Schwartz as to what Mr. Skolnick has been saying about Schwartz's alleged corruption.
Why is the Justice Department so upset? As is being reported in Conspiracy Nation, an IRS employee named Lynn Redmer has decided to "spill the beans" as to what she knows concerning corruption in the IRS. Skolnick views this as the sort of situation where "one of the [IRS] family", so to speak, has broken the code of silence and that this has got IRS and the government boiling mad. Skolnick expresses that he hopes Redmer does not herself become targetted for her brave whistle-blowing effort.
I asked as to how Whitewater was progressing. Readers of Conspiracy Nation may recall that Skolnick's sources had previously indicated to him that there was a stalemate in efforts to bring this story out; that the Democrats and Republicans, both being "dirty" in the Iran-Contra/Mena imbroglio, had come to an impasse where an "I won't tell if you won't tell" situation was in effect. This situation is beginning to moderate, due to the huge pressure being brought to bring this story out. For example, there is a Virginia attorney, connected with that State's government, who has been trying to launch his own investigation into the supposed "suicide" of White House deputy counsel Vincent Foster, jr. Skolnick thinks that we will see things heating up in March and April.
Sherman Skolnick had, years ago, written a book on airline crashes which was suppressed. He expressed his wish, during our conversation, to again try to publish a book. His concern however is that, due to narrow corporate ownership of most publishing houses, any book he writes will never see the light of day. I suggested to him that Thunder's Mouth Press might possibly handle him (Thunder's Mouth was courageous enough, for example, to publish Mike Levine's The Big White Lie). Skolnick said that, yes, he had considered Thunder's Mouth. He added that he certainly has got enough documentation because government employees are routinely albeit surreptitiously sending him information. I, for one, hope he does get a book out there. Mr. Skolnick has important information that many would want to know. Due to Mr. Skolnick's worldwide recognition as a veteran investigator into corruption, a publisher stands a good chance of making money from the publication of any book by him.
Mr. Skolnick has tons of documents lying around, and he is receiving more all the time. One winter, in the middle of a blizzard, a truck pulled up in front of the offices of the Citizens' Committee to Clean-up the Courts [CCCC] with boxes and boxes of documents for Mr. Skolnick and his associates.
The "CCCC" is always on the lookout for new ways to "get the word out". They use their recorded phone message (312-731-1100), they print and distribute leaflets, and they have their own weekly public access TV show. The Citizens' Committee is now about to acquire video equipment which will allow them on-the-spot access to their sources. Previously, when they had wanted to interview someone, it was necessary to have the interviewee visit the set of their show. Now, they will be able to pursue their quarry with their own cameras. Mr. Skolnick also has received as a gift a "super-duper fax machine" that he is trying to figure out how to operate. The machine, once operational, will reputedly be able to send out over 100 messages simultaneously.
Mr. Skolnick has become used to controversy. In the late 60's, uproar was so intense after he had brought financial corruption to light that the Chicago police cordoned off both ends of the narrow street on which he resides. Mysterious black helicopters routinely follow he and his associates as they pursue their investigations. The "CCCC" maintains their phone message, in part, because some government employees do not dare have their names on any mailing list that Skolnick and associates might put out. With the recorded phone message, government employees who want to know what is going on but who are fearful of surveillance can sneak to a pay phone and get the "rest of the story".
Finally, as a personal note, I want to add that I found Mr. Skolnick to be an excellent conversationalist. He was forthcoming with any information he had and was the sort of person who you could easily talk with and have the time seem to fly by. He has an excellent sense of humor, which is a bit too rare, I think, amongst conspiracy researchers (although he stresses that, strictly speaking, he is not a "conspiracy theorist"). Mr. Skolnick keeps the frightening truths he uncovers in perspective by being able to, from time to time, just stand back and laugh at the whole thing.
I encourage distribution of "Conspiracy Nation."
Coming to you from Illinois -- "The Land of Skolnick"