I remember my dad telling me that if he had been accused of being a Communist during the McCarthy red scare, he would have said or done whatever was asked of him (named names, etc) so that he could keep working and supporting his family. I thought it was a cowardly perspective but now I'm a father myself I totally get it.

Funny enough, my great-grandfather was Joe Welch who famously stood up to McCarthy. It's hard for me to imagine him not standing up to those baseless accusations and waiting/hoping for someone else to do it.