Posted on 06/02/2005 5:43:54 PM PDT by sactodan
Vigilante: vig·i·lan·te; Pronunciation: "vi-ji-'lan-tE Function: noun Etymology: Spanish, watchman, guard, from vigilante vigilant, from Latin vigilant-, vigilans : a member of a volunteer committee organized to suppress and punish crime summarily (as when the processes of law appear inadequate); broadly : a self-appointed doer of justice
W. Mark Felt was the number two man at the FBI when he exposed what he new about Watergate to Washington Post reporters Woodward and Bernstein. He held his secret for 30 years, which in Washington DC is no small acheivement. Recently, in an article in Vanity Fair magazine he revealed the truth. Richard Nixon eventualy resigned after the Post stories exposed the Watergate scandal.
While watching TV and listening to talk radio, the question has been asked, is Felt a hero? Mr. Felt's family calls him a hero. A number of pundits call him a hero. Why did the number two man at the FBI take his information to the streets, not a grand jury? The premise is that the Government was not enforcing the law, in fact was breaking the law and Felt did the right thing to force the government to act.
Funny, that's the same thing I've been hearing about the Minutemen.
Felt does not even rate being a vigilante. He was a snitch. The Watergate burglars had already been arrested and were being prosecuted, along with those who conspired with them. Felt should have kept his mouth shut. But he leaked information from the investigation to the press as part of a vendetta against Nixon because he hated Nixon.
....what ...WAS... Felt's religious denomination?
He acted out of selfish malice. He deserves neither hero nor vigilante. Backstabber might be more descriptive.
Bill Clinton says Felt 'did the right thing'
That's coming from a man who clearly doesn't know right from wrong!
I had an ineresting conservation with the superintendent of our public school. As we walked out of the school this evening, he asked me if I have been following the "deep throat" story. When I told him that I was thankful that the guy never got the #1 spot in the FBI he smiled back at me and said, "I guess I am not the only one that does not think this guy was some kind of hero.
Felt acted out of duty to his country. He is a true patriot. He obviously felt an obligation to the truth, he felt the constitution was being undermined, he felt the FBI was being misused by Hoover's successor. He uncovered corruption at the highest level of our government and brought it to light for the people.
He didn't perceive a need to bring his own corruption to light though did he?
Who ordered him to commit the crimes? And provide a source.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.