So what is YOUR take on James Webb's book? Some pretty awful stuff.

[TomInTib]

And it gets a whole lot worse.
Webb is screwed.
Before the flamethrowers are lit, let's think about our collective outrage over Libby's stuff. And Webb's shit is pretty bad.

I really hate to do this, but here it is. And we're going to hear a lot more of it...

http://drudgereport.com/flashaw.htm

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Sure, let's pass it around.

Give it maximum exposure! That's just what we need right now. :sarcasm:

And, by the way, did you know that we're DOOMED? http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3802032285333380788

[Lone_Star_Dem]

2. Have you seen this thread yet?

If not you may find it informative.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x2491792

[TomInTib]

9. Thanks, I just got home.

I don't bother to look past the most recent page.

[Beetwasher]

3. What's The Matter, The Other Threads Weren't Good Enough For You? *yawn*

DOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMEEEDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :eyes:

Pathetic.

Here it is in context, if you care. It is in no way sexual. and apparently none other than John McCain thought it was a good book:

[TomInTib]

15. I especially liked the chick who could slice the banana with her vagina

four pieces, no less.

I just got home and saw this. I never look at any but the first page on GD.

But I wonder what our reaction would be if Hastert had written something like this.

[Beetwasher]

24. DOOOOOO OOOOM MMMMMMM MEEEE DDDD!!!!!

Wonder away you nervous Nelly. I understand your "concern", it's noted, Chester.

[blitzen]

4. hey dude, learn how to read...take a literature course or something...

maybe do some research on cultural customs in vietnam...

i guess that would be too much hard work

[TomInTib]

11. I can read, even though I never went to school.

But I did spend 39 months in Vietnam and I never saw anything quite like this.

But then again, a man and his son was a two-fer to us.

[blitzen]

19. okay, then read this, and tell us what you think Webb's point was

in writing that scene

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2491391&mesg_id=2491666

[TomInTib]

23. Thank you.

But try telling that to the 'pub voters in Virginia.

I understand the SE Asian culture very well.

But I also understand the dumbass American voter.

Thanks for sending that, blitzen.

Tom

[blitzen]

28. I agree with you about the dumb-ass voters...

But am hoping that there are enough smart ones to make up for it.

Webb will probably have to address it...and he should stand tall and take pride in the literary merits of his work. And if this is the sort of thing he actually witnessed, he should make that really clear. I'm actually rather impressed with him as a novelist...and I highly doubt that Macaca could do the same.

Who knows how this will play out? You may be right, but we'll see.

[SaveElmer]

30. Unless this becomes a major story in the MSM...

This is not gonna filter down to most people in Virginia...

If it does, Webb's statements regarding his Vietnam experiences will reveal Allen for the dumbass he is...not to mention re-highlight Allen's chickenhawk record!

[driver8]

26. Hey dude...what's with the hostility?

Is the OP the first person to post something that has already been discussed?

Jeezus...chill the fuck out.

[blitzen]

31. no, i was referring to the fact that the passage was being read out of...

context.

For the full context see post #19.

Unfortunately, the original poster is probably right--people will see just the small excerpt and not realize how it functions in that scene of the novel

[bluestateguy]

5. Well handwringing and whining about it will certainly be productive

I hardly remember anything about Scooter Libby's book that no one bought. It was not relevant to felonies that he committed.

[KingFlorez]

6. Skinner debunked this

[MannyGoldstein]

7. Yow. WTF?

Not quite hot-bear-on-little-girl action - but pretty awful.

Put a fork in Webb, he's done - looks like Macacawitz has the last laugh.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

8. Ummm... Did you read the other responses to the OP?

[Beetwasher]

10. Much Easier To Wring Your Hands And Cry DOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!

n/t

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

13. Yes! We're DOOMED!

Might as well just go home and hide in the basement with a bottle of Scotch, because Webb wrote a novel with a penis in it, and we're DOOMED!

[MannyGoldstein]

20. Good Idea, Anyway

So you'd say that Scooter's opus was simply a novel with a young girl in it?

I will head down to the basement with some scotch - I had a rough week, great idea.

[MannyGoldstein]

14. Oy. What Ever Happened to "It Was A Dark And Stormy Night..."

Perhaps I'm just an old prude - but couldn't he pick something else to write about? It's creepy.

I'm pretty far to the Left by today's standards - heck I'm voting for the Green candidate for Mass. governor because Deval Patrick is too far to the Right for me - and even I'm unnerved by Webb's stuff. How do you think the average Joe and Jill going to react?

[Beetwasher]

21. OMG!!!!!!!! It's ALL So Confusing and Creepy!!!!!!!!!

Won't somebody PLEASE think of the children!! THE CHILDREN!!!!! DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMEDDDDDDD!!!

Why even bother reading it in context right?

[Torgo Johnson]

22. I so totally agree..

Let's make sure to only write books about the good things that happened in Vietnam.

:sarcasm:

[Infinite Hope]

12. LOCK THIS THREAD

This already has a thread. Keep it there. There are already explanations about this being a cultural practice in that part of the world. Read that stuff first before starting redundant threads.

[MrSlayer]

16. Much ado about nothing.

This is meaningless.

[NYCGirl]

17. Isn't it interesting that Webb's many books got great reviews when

he was a Republican? Even McCain loved them. Now that he's running as a Democrat, Allen and Drudge have problems.

http://www.amazon.com/s/104-5429749-9754331?ie=UTF8&tag=mozilla-20&index=blended&link%5Fcode=qs&field-keywords=james%20webb&sourceid=Mozilla-search

[AtomicKitten]

29. reminds me of something -- hmmmm

Oh yeah, that's right. Michael J. Fox doing ads for Arlen Specter.

[ACK]

18. Damn Redundant shit - this has been around 10 days already all over

And debunked and debunked and even the fucking Free Republic board people have gotten on it like - oh yes - 10 days ago and thought it was a load of shit,
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1720926/posts

Even a poster there saw it as a load of shit to quote,
"To: ReagansRaiders
I read Webb's 'Fields of Fire' which, while not a great book and entirely too derivative of Norman Mailer's and James Jones' works, was a solid, well-written novel, and certainly one of the better Vietnam war novels. A published, award-winning fiction writer myself--and no fan of Webb's political views--I resent this attack on his character by way of his fictional works. One of my short stories is about an acquitted child molester; another centers around four people who killed for money. Does that mean I sympathize or empathize with or secretly fantasize about their crimes? Emphatically, no.

Webb has plenty of weaknesses insofar as his political and philosophical views are concerned, all legitimate targets in a political campaign. This article was shoddy and below-the-belt.
3 posted on 10/17/2006 9:15:35 AM PDT by Rembrandt_fan "

Oh yeah and the whole thing is based not on incest or molestation but on some Vietnamese social tradition and the westerners reaction to it.


Hold on that just is not enough?

John McCain himself loved the book and wrote a ringing endorsement for the thing and yes except for the Free Republic part Skinner has already said all this.

Btw, fuck it all Webb is not done. This has gotten no traction so far.

Sooooooo!?!?!

Stop frickin giving this traction until it gets big press and we have to do a frontal assault to debunk.

[Sensitivity]

25. PLEASE STOP, DELETE, LOCK, THIS REDUNDANT B.S.

[mike_c]

27. oh for god's sake-- yeah, the same sorts of folks who like to ban books...

...will get their knickers in a wad over this. I'm not gonna lose much sleep over their fear and loathing. If they determine the outcome of the election then it's a democracy and they deserve exactly the government they get.

[Chomskyite]

32. History repeats itself

This is just like when Upton Sinclair's candidacy for Governor of California in the 30s was shot down when one of the LA papers began quoting characters from his novels. It worked then, but voters today think so little of books in general they won't even bother to pay attention.

[proud patriot]

33. I'm locking this thread

Debunked here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x2491792