Felt Update

It appears that Mr. Epstein did, in fact, name Mr. Felt in his original Commentary article. The relevant passage is below (via Powerline):

Bernstein and Woodward identify their main source only under the titillating code-name of “Deep Throat,” and indicate that “Deep Throat” confirmed their suspicion that Segretti—and political spying—were at the root of the Watergate conspiracy. But who was “Deep Throat” and what was his motivation for disclosing information to Woodward and Bernstein? The prosecutors at the Department of Justice now believe that the mysterious source was probably Mark W. Felt, Jr., who was then a deputy associate director of the FBI, because one statement the reporters attribute to “Deep Throat” could only have been made by Felt. (I personally suspect that in the best traditions of the New Journalism, “Deep Throat” is a composite character.) Whether or not the prosecutors are correct, it is clear that the arduous and time-consuming investigation by Woodward and Bernstein of Segretti was heavily based on FBI “302” reports, which must ultimately have been made available by someone in the FBI.

The Watergate Myth

No, not the scandal itself. Who was responsible for uncovering it. Via Mark Levin at The Corner, read here. An excellent exposition illustrating the journalistic self-promotion regarding the Watergate scandal (culminating in a Hollywood movie: "All the President's Men) and identifying the true 'heroes' in uncovering the conspiracy that brought down Nixon. Not to mention that the guy was dead on in terms of the source of Deep Throat in 1974 (not the name itself...but where he was in the government and what his motivation was)! But what is most interesting is to examine this model in terms of today's media. This sort of thing is *still* going on today, as can be seen dirctly in the Abu Ghirabi story. There again we had a government investigation that had developed the evidence and was prosecuting the offenders when, months after this had been done, the media hops on the bandwagon (specifically Rather & Mapes at CBS) and declares themselves the whistelblowers.

True Fascistic Tyranny
The next time someone you know complains about the injustice of the U.S. judicial system or the harshness of its drug laws, remind them of this. I don't know whether this young woman is guilty or not. However, I do know that the evidence presented (drugs found in bags that were out of her posession, unlocked, and in the hands of numerous individuals) wouldn't meet preponderance of the evidence standards in the U.S. And note how Thailand completely excludes any exculpatory evidence that would favor the defendant. This is little more than a show trial. However, its ridiculous evidentiary standards pale in comparision to its horrific sentencing guidelines. Death for 9 pounts of pot? Life in prision? Even the 20 year prison sentence she recieved is draconian beyond belief. Thailand (along with Singapore and many other such nations) seem to have never heard the adage 'let the punishment fit the crime.' Tell your friends and family: skip out on the Bali trip for the near future. Stick to vacation sites with reasonable justice systems...or you may end up on a permanent vacation. D.GOOCH