"Contrary to popular theology, there is nothing that produces as much exhilaration and zest for living as an ugly, protracted, bitter-end vendetta that rages for years and comes close to ruining both sides."

The FBI wants the right to review the late muckraker Jack Anderson's papers at George Washington University, and to excise anything it prefers to keep confidential.

Comments

[Inkstained Wretch]

You didn't mention the other fascinating angle here. The Chronicle story indicates the FBI wants the notes as part of the recent AIPAC probe:

"The FBI eventually told Kevin Anderson that the investigation centered on Steven J. Rosen and Keith Weissman, two former officials with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee who have been charged with receiving and distributing national defense information."

[jf]

I give up. The only explanation I can come up with is that Bush is trying to set an iron-clad precedent so that his secrets will never see the light of day. Has anyone smarter than me (which opens the pool up pretty wide) written about this theory, or am I grasping here?

[E. A. Blair]

He who controls the present, controls the past. He who controls the past, controls the future.

[lunchstealer]

Sure, they can make photocopies of all the material, and then take those home and excise to their hearts' content, so long as the originals remain intact. I have no problem with the government excising/redacting all sorts of things as long as the original information is still available to anyone who needs it.

[Seamus]

Sounds to me like the Anderson family and GWU ought to be quietly and quickly photocopying all of Anderson's papers and sequestering the copies in an undisclosed location -- or, even better, posting them on the Web.

[SR]

"Sounds to me like the Anderson family and GWU ought to be quietly and quickly photocopying all of Anderson's papers and sequestering the copies in an undisclosed location -- or, even better, posting them on the Web."

That was my exact thought: I'd be spending every spare minute of my day scanning them and e-mailing the PDFs to everyone in my addressbook.

[Ruthless]

Thinking back on it, I'll bet my dad cancelled our subscription to the newspaper carrying Drew Pearson, Jack Anderson's mentor, because my mom made the mistake of reading and quoting Drew.

Now I'm my mother's Drew to the consternation of Dad.

[James]

They never would have had the balls to try this while Anderson was alive. There were afraid of him, just one guy, in a way they're not afraid of the rest of us combined.