Mark Foley and James Webb -- A Study in Hypocrisy and Media Bias

Mark Foley and James Webb -- A Study in Hypocrisy and Media Bias

Written by Doc Farmer
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
ChronWatch.com

I'm sure all of you know the name Mark Foley by now. He is -- or, more accurately, was -- the Congressman for the 16th district in Florida, who sent some very sexual Instant Messages (NOT e-Mails, okay?) to a congressional Page. There's been some question as to whether the Page was 16 or 18 when those IMs were being sent, but it doesn't matter to me quite frankly. Foley was wrong, he violated the trust of his district, the Congress, and the Nation, and he unceremoniously was booted out of office. Rightly so, I might add.

However, you might not know the name of James Webb as well. You might or might not know that he's running against George Allen for a Senate seat in Virginia. The usual mudslinging has gone back and forth between the candidates on things like racism, dead deer heads in mailboxes, and who said the "N" word when. I wonder if they ever get around to talking about actual national ISSUES, but that's become rather secondary to most political campaigns. Sadly.

James Webb is also a writer, apparently. He's a novelist. He's written a number of books, including such notable tomes as "Fields of Fire", "Lost Soldiers", "Something To Die For", "A Sense Of Honor" and more. I've never read them myself (Dad's more into war novels than I am) but apparently they have received some critical acclaim. Frankly, I didn't even know the guy's a writer. However, I found out on Thursday.

The Drudge Report published a press release (go here) from George Allen's campaign office, which described some excerpts from Webb's novels. They were, not to put a fine point on it, utterly disgusting. They described homosexual pedophilic acts, heterosexual underage acts, homosexual adult acts, demeaning descriptions of women, racist terminology, and a host of less-than-uplifting imagery. Attend (but be warned, this stuff is graphic and disgusting):

Lost Soldiers: "A shirtless man walked toward them along a mud pathway. His muscles were young and hard, but his face was devastated with wrinkles. His eyes were so red that they appeared to be burned by fire. A naked boy ran happily toward him from a little plot of dirt. The man grabbed his young son in his arms, turned him upside down, and put the boy's penis in his mouth."
A Country Such as This: "[He] could see Jawbone and Ashley Asthmatic [two guards at a Vietnamese prison camp] napping together in the grass. They faced inward, their arms entwined. It looked like they were masturbating each other. It didn't surprise him. ... It was common to see men holding hands, embracing, playing with each other. Some of them [the guards] had wanted him. He could tell in those evanescent moments between his bao cao bow, the obligatory deference when a guard entered his cell, and the first word or blow that followed it... Quick, grinding voices, turgid with repressed passion. An exploratory reaching of the hand near his groin..."

Something to Die For: "We're on our way to becoming the world's recreational center, a nation [USA] not to be taken seriously. Where are we still the undisputed leader? Music. Movies. Fast food. Drugs. . . . the billboards fifty years from now as you come over the bridge and stop at the tollbooths outside Manhattan: A smiling beautiful naked woman, and the sign saying AMERICAN ASS IS OUR MOST IMPORTANT PRODUCT."

Fields of Fire: "He saw the invitation with every bouncing breast and curved hip. . . . He was thirteen. . . . She was fifteen . . . . In a few moments she drew him to her and he murmured in his quiet voice, 'I am still small.' 'You are large enough,' she answered. And he found he was."

A Sense of Honor: "... that is, if you knew who your sister was, Brustein, and if she'd been born with anything between her legs except an a**hole, I'd be happy to bring some class to your low-rent name by knocking the bitch up." (p. 223)

Now, I'll grant you that these are works of fiction. I'll also grant you that this was certainly released for maximum political effect. Considering that the information was released from Webb's political candidate, there's no doubt in anyone's mind about that. It's also a certainty that these are Webb's own words.

Yet, look at the media reaction. Or lack thereof.

With Foley, they went NUTS. Scandal, they cried! Who knew what, when? How is the House Leadership involved? Should Hastert resign? In addition, even though Foley's execrable behavior came to light at the tail end of September, there is still an effort to paint all rep/con/tairs with Foley's tar (or is that some other substance?).

Now, compare that with the reaction to Webb.

Have you even HEARD about this story outside rep/con/tair-leaning talk radio or Fox News or some Internet News Services like WorldNetDaily or NewsMax? CNN, I believe, has mentioned the story -- in fact, Lynne Cheney, the Vice President's wife, mentioned it in her interview with Wolf Blitzer. You know, the one where she Blitzed Blitzer, and the folks at Chicken Noodle News, for their anti-American, pro-Terrorist, and VERY lib/dem/soc/commie bias.

I did a search at news.google.com for the words "Jim Webb" and "novel". At this writing, I found 64 hits since the news release on Thursday, and 235 overall. Compare that to the words "Mark Foley" and "scandal". That search came up with nearly 20,000 hits.

I've also heard and read some things about the Webb issue that I've not heard at all for Foley. A spirited defense. Lib/dem/soc/commies are coming forward, defending Webb's 'artistic license' and 'creative imagery' in putting out this sexist, racist, and in some cases, pedophilic garbage. They note that Webb has received nice words and praise from rep/con/tairs like John McCain (RINO-Arizona) and others.

Webb's supporters even make the claim that an adult male taking his four-year-old son's penis into his mouth is not a sexual act, but an issue of cultural diversity. Uh, Earth to lib/dem/soc/commies -- I've traveled pretty far and wide in my many years, and have NEVER come across that little gem of local customs and etiquette. Even if such a thing is true (and I sincerely doubt this), there's one thing for certain -- it is NOT an acceptable custom in America. Or most of the rest of the planet, as far as I can tell. Nor can I tell how such information broadens the storyline in a novel or provides "cultural credibility" to make the book seem more 'real'.

If you look at Foley's Instant Messages, they are by one way of interpretation simple fantasy. Yes, he's in communication with another person, and yes, he's describing sexual acts. As far as I'm aware, he has never had a sexual relationship, or even any sexual contact, with the guy at the other end of the modem. Therefore, you could make the argument that his IMs were mere fiction. It is a very weak argument. But then again, so is the lib/dem/soc/commie's defense of Webb's perverted and disgusting words.

Did Allen's team cherry-pick Webb's words? Yup. Did the news media cherry-pick Foley's words? Yup. Did Allen's team time this press release for political purposes? Of course. Did the news media time their "revelations" about Foley for political purposes? Of course.

So why is Foley unemployed and in hiding, while Webb is STILL running for high public office?

For those of you wondering, let me once again make myself very clear on this. Foley's words and his actions were sickening and squamulose. He abused his position, he acted like a pervert, and he deserved to get his sorry ass kicked straight out of Congress (and, hopefully, straight into court, then jail). To my knowledge, NOT ONE PERSON has defended Foley's sick acts. Not in the media, and certainly not in his political party.

Yet lib/dem/soc/commies are actively hiding a story about Webb's own words, and defending him in what little media actually is covering this story. Which ain't much of the media, it must be said.

There used to be a principle in America -- "Equal Justice Under Law". The architects for the Supreme Court Building in Washington, D.C. went so far as to carve those words over the entrance. Even if no crime was committed, there was (once upon a time, anyway) a concept of equal justice and fair treatment. If you do something for one person, you do the same thing for others. If you open a door for a lady, you also open a door for a gentleman. If you condemn the actions of one person who does wrong, you condemn the actions of another person if they do the same wrong.

Let me state this clearly. Foley was wrong to write what he wrote, and he has no business in high government office. The same is true for Webb -- he was wrong to write what he wrote, and he has no business in high government office. I've never defended Foley. Moreover, it sickens me no end to see the lib/dem/soc/commies defend Webb. For those who call Webb's work "art" I can only assume these are the same mental midgets who think that dunking a crucifix in a vat of urine, or smearing excrement on a portrait of the mother of the man on that crucifix are also "art".

I think, when you compare these two situations honestly and objectively, you'll come to the same conclusions as I.

Equal Justice and Fair Treatment do not exist in the media, or in the halls of lib/dem/soc/commie-dom.

Anyone who tells you otherwise is a liar, a fool, or both.

About the Writer: Doc Farmer is a writer and humorist who is also a moderator on ChronWatch's Forum. He formerly lived in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, but now resides in the Midwest. Doc receives e-mail at docfarmer9999@yahoo.co.uk.

This Article Was First Published In ChronWatch At: http://www.chronwatch.com/content/contentDisplay.asp?aid=24686

We've got the equivalent here in Ohio. A "what did he know and when did he know it" kind of thing that is largely ignored (surprise, surprise) by the LSOM (LameStream Ohio Media).

Here are some links to some Jerome Corsi articles as he's been following this story, unlike the 527 Media outlets here in Ohio.

"Foley Problem" for Ohio's Strickland

The smoking gun in the Strickland scandal

What did Strickland know and when did he know it?

Dem cover-up in Buckeye State?

Impossible! I'm that rare breed, the ever-elusive male lesbian, so technically speaking, I can't be a homophobe...

Well, I live in Virginia and definitely plan to vote...but it won't be for either one of them! Allen is arrogant, unresponsive, ambitious, and way too much of a party hack to be my senator; Webb blew it when he embraced the Clintons!
But let's be fair, shall we--Webb's no Mark Foley, that comparison just doesn't wash clean. You state: I've never read them myself (Dad's more into war novels than I am) but apparently they have received some critical acclaim. Frankly, I didn't even know the guy's a writer. I have read his books and would invite you to read also to get the full context. He was writing of personal observances (fiction, after all, is 'facts rearranged') in the gritty style of combat warriors--something that, at least, Webb knows something about while student-deferred football jock Allen doesn't!

The Media are NOT biased.

They are political organizations, who hire political hacks as journalists, and run a 24/7/365 campaign against Republicans.

And have for 40 years.

It is time for the Right to face that fact, and stop complaining about bias, hypocrisy and fairness.

Why should the Left be fair to the Right? Why should the MSM be honest with their viewers and readers about their political orgs, when it works so well?

It is past time to educate the public on their duplicity, and run against them, one by one, reporter by reporter.

amen to that, there is somthing about both that i can't stand
combine that with the fact that allen torpedoed the tysons tunnel (which unfortunately turned into a partisan issue),

they can both go to hell (or sit on the b-way at 5:30, whatever's worse)

Maybe I'm in the minority here on FR, but the Webb stuff he wrote doesn't bother me that much, its just fiction. I dont think he was ADVOCATING the behaviour either. But I DO know that if it was a Republican that had written it, it would be FRONT PAGES NEWS for WEEKS.

I have to disagree with you, MeanDog. I don't accept the fact that you must read every single word of an author before you can criticise specific instances of sexism, racism and paedophilic filth. Context doesn't enter into this. How does a father committing an act of paedophilia, felating a four-year-old boy, add to the context of a war novel? It was put in there for salacious titillation.

Your second point about Allen's service is specious. Military services is not a requirement for holding high public office.

Thank you.

I'm getting pretty tired of the false argument that military service is an automatic qualifier for higher office. If that were true, then John F'n would be president now.

Let me state this clearly. Foley was wrong to write what he wrote, and he has no business in high government office. The same is true for Webb -- he was wrong to write what he wrote, and he has no business in high government office.

Exactly. The MSM have done a huge disservice to Virginia voters in this campaign. It is troubling indeed.

There is something to the smile of James Webb. The last time I saw a smile like that, it was on Ted Bundy. The eyes exude pure evil.

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