Saturday, September 08, 2007

Reviews & Reviewers

[Update, 10.35am] In this morning’s Chicago Tribune, columnist Clarence Page reviews Until Proven Innocent, noting that “a breathtaking list of procedural abuses led to [Nifong’s] disbarment, resignation and prosecution. The abuses included the withholding by his office of DNA evidence for more than nine months that proved the athletes’ innocence. I hope Nifong spent his night in the pokey thinking about the young lives he ruined. I also hope he thought about the voters he flimflammed, along with a national audience, all so that he could be re-elected in his 40 percent black district and maximize his pension.”

He continues,

That narrative comes through with painful clarity in a new book, “Until Proven Innocent: Political Correctness and the Shameful Injustices of the Duke Lacrosse Rape Case,” co-authored by Stuart Taylor, a National Journal columnist and Newsweek contributor, and K.C. Johnson, a history professor at Brooklyn College and CUNY.

Nifong’s overreaching “may be the worst prosecutorial misconduct ever exposed while it was happening,” said Taylor, in an interview. Taylor was one of the early skeptics of Nifong’s case.

Like the case, the book offers a chilling portrait of how the criminal justice system can nail and punish the innocent. Usually the innocent are poor people who lack the money, connections or other resources to mount a proper defense. In its concluding chapters, the book recounts several striking examples of poor blacks and Hispanics, in particular, who were sent to Death Row but later released as a result of misconduct by prosecutors.

But it was the racial and socioeconomic lineup in the Duke case—upscale white male students accused by a poor black female stripper—that excited passions in a different ideological direction. Left-progressive activists, pundits and intellectuals allied with the prosecutor to steamroll over any presumption of the boys’ innocence.

For some petitioners and op-ed writers, the young jocks provided too convenient a target as symbols of white male hegemony, runaway testosterone and every other agenda that could be hung on them like tree ornaments. Voices as varied as The New York Times and CNN star Nancy Grace come in for a well-deserved skewering here.

Think about it. If any institutions should be engaged in the critical reasoning that it takes to analyze situations like these, weighing claims and counterclaims, and sorting out facts from rumors, it is the media and college professors. The university, of all places, should teach not only good ideas but also the rational thinking that leads one to a lifetime of producing good ideas.

In that spirit, it is important to note the solid journalism that did occur, even if it failed remarkably to have much of an impact during the months Nifong’s freight train surged ahead. Besides Taylor, there was Ed Bradley, the CBS reporter who died before the charges were dismissed, “60 Minutes” producer Michael Radutzky, and MSNBC’s Dan Abrams. Each courageously pursued the growing holes in the case, despite unsubstantiated countercharges by die-hard critics who would rather punish the messenger than listen to the uncomfortable facts.

“This entire experience has opened my eyes up to a tragic world of injustice I never knew existed,” said Reade Seligmann, one of the three accused Duke students. He and his teammates were fortunate to have the resources to fight back. Most defendants don’t. That’s all the more reason for those of us who believe in justice to scrupulously avoid pursuing personal agendas at the expense of the truth, no matter how much it may satisfy our preconceived notions.

Page joins such other well-known "right-wing" figures (at least in the Group of 88's version of reality) as Nadine Strossen, Michael Kinsley, Evan Thomas, and John Grisham in praising the book.

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I’ve received quite a few e-mails from people who have had trouble getting the book at Barnes & Noble. If you have had difficulties, please put a comment in the thread below, with the location, and I will pass the information onto the publisher.

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One alternative to B&N is amazon.com—which, I have been assured, received an emergency re-shipment of books to fill all orders more quickly. Amazon also allows reader reviews, which I occasionally use—not so much for the individual (pseudonymous) reviews, but to get a sense of the general consensus.

Of course, any system that allows such practices can be abused. The one negative review the book has received came from a “T. Edwards.” “T.,” it turns out, has reviewed only one other book on the amazon.com system, a 2005 offering from Bernard Goldberg. The two reviews offered by “T.” border on self-plagiarism.

“T.,” 2005: “I will confess at the outset that I did not read the entire book.”

“T.,” 2007: “I confess I only flipped through this book.”

“T.,” 2005: “I didn’t come across anything very new or insightful.”

“T.,” 2007: “I didn’t see anything new or insightful in the sections I did read.”

“T.,” 2005: “The whole enterprise struck me as pretty mean-spirited cut and paste job.”

“T.,” 2007: “It has a cut and paste quality to it.”

“T.” does add a new claim for his/her 2007 review: “There is little, if any original reportage here.”

Just 65 interviews and 1050 sourcenotes.

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More serious negative comments about the book’s portrayal of the Group of 88 came in a recent Chronicle comment section, from a self-styled “Duke instructor.” The “instructor” left no name or department affiliation, although he/she did say that he/she “went to a private university with lots of rich kids” and attends/attended graduate school at Duke. That said, I’ve heard many of his/her arguments second-hand, and am willing to speculate that the instructor is, in fact, an actual instructor.

“However badly it turned out, if you read their writings, the ‘88’ were trying to be on the side of students in some way, even while a lot of people outside the University were claiming that Duke was simply a bastion of white rapist privilege.”

So that’s why Group of 88’er Grant Farred called all Duke students who dared to register to vote in Durham “secret” racists; or why fellow 88’er Houston Baker published an open letter asserting, “All of Duke athletics has now been drawn into the seamy domains of Colorado football and other college and university blind-eying of male athletes, veritably given license to rape, maraud, deploy hate speech, and feel proud of themselves in the bargain.”

Imagine what Group members might have said if they didn’t want to be “on the side of students.”

“When we (instructors, grad students, professors) talk to people at other institutions, they often assume not only that the stereotypes about Duke undergrads are true, but that we support them.”

This statement is almost comical. I’m sure that when Wahneema Lubiano (“Many whites . . . might not ever be persuaded by appeals to reason, to what we ‘know’ and agree to be ‘truth’—that all men/women were created equal, for example”) chats with colleagues at academic conferences, they “often assume” that she’s a fierce defender of the stereotype of white male privilege.

“Most of the signers of the statement signed something that was simply a support of victims of rape and violence generally.”

It’s just a coincidence, I suppose, that the only “victim” of rape and/or violence mentioned in the statement was “this young woman,” Crystal Mangum. And it’s odd that 87 highly educated individuals believed that the statement was “simply a support of victims of rape and violence generally” given that its author, Lubiano, informed them in an e-mail that it was a response to the “lacrosse incident” and not a support of victims of rape and violence generally.

“When I said that the listening statement had nothing to do with the case, I meant that Nifong did not use the statement in trying to make his case; that is, it did not facilitate the case against the three defendants.”

The defense attorneys took sharp exception to this claim. Not only did they position the Group’s statement prominently in their change-of-venue motion, but they ended their initial PowerPoint presentation to the special prosecutors not with a visual of Nifong, or of Mangum—but with a visual of the Group’s statement.

“I have learned that no student at Duke is racist or sexist, and that is a logical impossibility that a Duke student could commit a crime, and that all our professors should be fired and replaced by KC Johnson, in order to avoid the giant left-wing conspiracy that will elect Michael Moore president, outlaw Christianity, and force us all to listen to ‘This American Life.’”

In fact, the blog—which has more than 1,000 posts—has never suggested any such thing about Duke students. It has said that I have never applied for a job at Duke and have no desire to work there in the future. Nor have any of the more than 1,000 posts mentioned Michael Moore or ‘This American Life.’ I did mention Christianity in one comment section, when I stated I was agnostic.

“By the way, BUY KC JOHNSON’S BOOK! ONLY $16.17 ON AMAZON! ALL YOUR QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED, AND ALL YOUR OPINIONS WILL BE PREPARED!” [original all caps]

And, if you want to know more about Congress and the Cold War, you can buy my book on that topic, only $22.22 on amazon.com. “A Duke instructor” appears unfamiliar with how the publishing industry works: in general, professors (well, most professors, anyway) write books, and publishers sell them. Publishers rarely give books away for free; readers have to purchase them, or obtain them from a library. “A.D.i.” might not like this system, but it’s hardly unique to this case.

“A Duke instructor” did make one undeniable point about the Group of 88: “I’m not saying that they did a particularly good job, or that some of them didn’t get carried away.”

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Despite the concerns of "T." and “A Duke instructor,” the manuscript was reviewed by as many people as possible--including a few unconventional auidences. The photos below show a reviewer taking the blue pencil to what became Chapter 25; and then the same reviewer, Darrion Sardo, engrossed in the final product.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.usFree Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

138 comments:

Anonymous said...

Tonight (Sept. 7th) about 8 p.m. I got the last copy they had at the B&N on Congress Ave. in Boynton Beach, Florida.

Debrah said...

I'll take the opinion of a cute baby over a Gang member.

Anonymous said...

JLS says....,

I have nothing to say about tonights post, but I feel compelled to post tonight anyway. As I type, Mike Nifong is in jail.

Wow think about that. Mike Nifong is in JAIL.

Anonymous said...

So much of what these so-called academics do revolves around how they define something . . . they control the defining process and see no hypocrisy in redefining the rational for an argument when they are losing control of its narrative. They are now discussing a different topic altogether. It is a patently dishonest tactic, but these people are skilled in their dishonesty and hypocrisy . . . they just don't seem to mind . . . winning is everything to them . . . nothing matters . . . not even falsely accusing someone . . . not concerned for even falsely accusing someone for a crime that could possibly send that person to prison for 30 years . . . the narrative, their narrative, is more important than people . . . but their collective behavior is like that of any lynch mob . . . it is why such mobs have such low reputations . . . it is really a waste of time to discuss this with these rascist.

Anonymous said...

no copies ordered by the B&N in Metairie, LA

Anonymous said...

LOL. They're cute!

Anonymous said...

T. Edward's only other Amazon review is of a whetstone product, on which subject he is prolix. He does need to sharpen his book review skills, however, beyond cutting and pasting his same comments from one review to the next.

His principal objection to "Until Proven Innocent" appears to be that the book adds nothing new to what "people who haven't been living under a rock for the past 18 months" already know about the Duke lacrosse team case.

Or course, people who know about the case only what they learned from the national media might as well have gotten their information from under a rock-- which UPI compellingly overturns.

And then there are the people-- T. Edwards among them, one suspects-- who wish the story would crawl back under the rock.

But it's only going to grow bigger in the light of day. Millions and millions of dollars bigger. The story isn't going away.

Anonymous said...

I stopeed at a B&N in the Arboretum shopping center Charlotte, NC and they didn't have any in stock - that's what they told me and I didn't see it anywhere.

Borders - Charlotte Stonecrest: had ~3 copies out on the New Non-Fiction table on Thurs.. well now 2 since I snagged one* for reading while traveling in the next two weeks.

*Before purchase I flipped thru it and spent a few mins looking thru the sections because I didn't want to buy if it was just a copy/paste of the blog. Rest assured it is not and will keep me occupied for a while on the red-eyes.

Anonymous said...

KC, as always, destroys his adversaries through research and facts. Excited about getting my copy tomorrow.

Anonymous said...

I tried to get a copy at the Barnes & Noble in Palmdale CA - they "don't have any in the store, would you like to special order it?". I said no thanks, I will order from Amazon - and did, so I'll just have to wait. They had a huge display, the whole book-pyramid treatment, for Bill Clinton's new one, which at that moment was running even in sales with UPI on Barnes & Nobles OWN website.

Ridiculous. But I have noticed before that these guys are big libs. It is always difficult to find bestsellers that rub the wrong way on them. Never prominently displayed, always in the category shelf if they have it at all.

Bill in CA

Anonymous said...

2nd mistake in the book:

Page 21, line 5: "...she had two twenty-two-ounce Icehouse beers...". First, it's twenty-four, and second, I think Icehouse is an ale, not a beer.

Anonymous said...

None of the San Antonio area Barnes & Noble outlets are planning to stock your book, K.C. I called several of them in an effort to buy a copy, and this is what I was told. The Borders stores in town will have one copy per store. That's it! Surprises me since we have a sizable number of Duke grads in the area.

Anonymous said...

“Most of the signers of the statement signed something that was simply a support of victims of rape and violence generally.”

The signatories (and above all author) are supposed to be leaders in “a unique understanding the world” …how it functions, understanding people, and such. I mean, look at the depths of the views and grasp on race, sex, and gender (R-S-G) they understand above everyone else and hold true as unalienable facts. Right?

They, also, by their tenure and esteemed position, are versed above all in literature and writing and certainly how to compose a clear and concise message, right?

One would only surmise that they would send a message that is clear and concise and to the point. Nothing less could be expected.

Then how could they have crafted such a misunderstood statement if the above is supposed correct?

LOL – I can think of few reasons.

Gary Packwood said...

Four Borders and two B&N in Houston, Texas and Sugar Land, Texas report NO books available.

All sales staff want me to order the book.
::
GP

Anonymous said...

3rd mistake in the book: Page 25.

You think Roberts gave a shit about the broomstick comment? She's a stripper -- you think that's the worst she's heard? You must've grown up on the right side of the tracks, KC.

She had her $400. She knew that preppy white boys would never harm an "offended 'lady'". With her co-dancer obviously incapacitated, Roberts knew the jig was up. She needed to get out of there before the boys demanded their money back. She saw her exit -- "She waited several seconds [not exactly instantly offended, was she? She was calculating just as I say] and then exploded in [pretended] rage."

So she got $400 for 4 minutes work -- plus the money she was later to steal from CGM. Not a bad night's work for someone like Roberts.

Anonymous said...

B&N Arlington TX, Copeland Rd..."We show one copy on order, but it's not here...would you like to special order it?"

I declined.

On a less somber note...

"Hey, Mikey...I'm sittin' here after work (yes I actually still have a JOB) having a gin and tonic and a burger...mmmmmmm. Oh...and I got a paycheck yesterday.

STBY!!!"

Anonymous said...

Went to the Barnes & Noble in Brier Creek area of Raleigh, NC (near RDU Airport) Tues or Wed this week - there were about 25 copies out front on display near the front of the store on the end of one of the book cases, not a table.

Anonymous said...

No copies were ordered by the Barnes and Noble on Broadway Blvd., Tucson, Arizona. I was told that I could special order one.

Anonymous said...

KC, I've posted a few times over the past year. I must compliment you on a great job following this case. I went to B & N in Kansas City, as well as Borders. No copies. Borders said they had two on the way. I ordered from Amazon.
Anyway, best of luck. I have enjoyed your work.
cmf

Anonymous said...

Nice touch with the cute baby pictures.

Anonymous said...

Ordered my copy a month or two ago on Amazon and received it in the mail on Tuesday I think it was. Anyway, after reading about difficulties at some B&N stores getting a copy, I am glad I went the Amazon route.

I have completed reading the first five chapters. Here are some quick reactions so far:

Excellent read and worth every penny...congratulations to KC and Stuart for an outstanding book. I continue to be amazed at how much detail KC makes available on this blog and now even more detail is available in the book.

One striking example of new information in the book (at least for me) was how the police officers who searched the house at 610 Buchanan treated the occupants with complete and total disdain (including eating a piece of the birthday cake) and cruelly joking that they had found drugs when they had not. The description of the search left me with the view that a "police state" exists in Durham and "gestapo" tactics must be part of the police training in Durham. More evidence to me of the need for striking changes in the DPD and a complete civil rights violation investigation and trial.

Kim Roberts lied several times in the investigatory process. Why is she not being charged with "obstruction of justice" or some equivalent charge for lying?

Did not realize how hateful Gottlieb was towards Duke students until reading about him in the book. I hope he is no longer with the DPD or in law enforcement. He violated the civil rights of the three indicted and must be made accountable.

Why is Covington getting a pass? Did not know he had been subject to ethics violation previously, yet Duke put him forth as the spokesperson for the team? His recommendation was to stay quiet and not get lawyers....amazing advice for a lawyer. Also, Covington's loud comments at lunch when discussing the status of the case with some of the parents...maybe another ethics violation there. I hope there is focus on this man's role in the case and that he is held accountable for his enabling actions. Also, Dean Sue needs to answer questions about her dubious advice at the outset. Is she still in a position of importance at Duke?

Thankfully, the Thompsons retained Bill Thomas, a real lawyer. Besides the coach, the players and their parents, Bill Thomas was apparently the only voice of reason around at the outset.

Anonymous said...

Interesting insights into B&N practices. B&N has been criticized for focused marketing. Sell only what sells, etc. No unusual stuff.
Well, I'd guess someone in B&N NYC headquarters has put out the word, they are not to stock UPI, unless a special order. Someone at B&N is trying to suppress the book even if it means money lost. Is Pat Schroeder, AAP president, giving the orders? Her view appears to be only leftist books are good books. Books that might appeal to conservatives - gad, even Republicans - are bad.
I hope someone with common sense at B&N reads this. Of course, it could be that B&N has screwed up big time and ordered far too few copies of the book.
In the meantime, the ever stalwart Amazon sent me an e-note saying UPI shipped to me last night. I expect it today or Monday, without fail. Amazon delivers!
Cheers, JLJr.

Anonymous said...

KC wrote:

"Imagine what Group members might have said if they didn’t want to be 'on the side of students.' "

You're free to take issue with what more than a few of the G88 said or wrote. However, it is simply not the case that the group acted in concert on everything, or were of one collective mind. Projecting the particular views of a few onto the rest simply isn't fair.

Anonymous said...

Posted this on liestoppers- on sept. 4th 6:00 pm the Barnes & Noble in Center City Philadelphia did not have the book out- I had to ask an employee who showed me where it should be (but wasn't)- she said it must still be in the basement. She ultimately got me a copy from the basement- this took about 15 mins.

Locomotive Breath said...

There have long been complaints about the treatment of unPC books at B&N. This is one link from a random Google search.

http://www.evilwhiteguy.com/blog/archive/2004/08/24/453.aspx

Apparently these decisions are made at the local level by all those English majors who graduate from PC places like Duke's English department and who are reduced to working in bookstores because they can't find better jobs. (As opposed to those English majors who do get good jobs.)

Here's an interesting thread on "Customer Sabotage" of book placement.

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/07/20/customer-sabotage/

Anonymous said...

My copy arrived last night from Amazon, preordered last April. Great Job! Get ready for the circus, it's almost time for the Great Prophet to leave jail... Let's see what his entourage has in store for our entertainment.

Really cute little guy KC!

Anonymous said...

“I have learned that no student at Duke is racist or sexist, and that is a logical impossibility that a Duke student could commit a crime, and that all our professors should be fired and replaced by KC Johnson, in order to avoid the giant left-wing conspiracy that will elect Michael Moore president, outlaw Christianity, and force us all to listen to ‘This American Life.’”

You know, up until this point, I thought that "Duke instructor" had points that were wrong (as KC has demonstrated them to be wrong) but fair.

This straw man, however, is the sort of thing that in a perfect world would automatically result in the perpetrator's debating privileges being withheld for a month to a year. I'm serious. Debate happens when two people who hold differing positions explain why their position is right and why their opponent's position is wrong. Debate is productive. Debate is what is poisoned and corrupted and stifled when one party feels entitled to play both sides, and make up something which is quite obviously not their opponent's position and reply to that instead of what their opponent actually said.

"Duke instructor" should have his or her mouth taped shut for a month, while other people write apologies to KC for so egregiously, unfairly, and deliberately misrepresenting his views and sign the Duke instructor's name to these apologies.

Anonymous said...

sulax88 --

Oh, didn't you hear Vicky "Burnin' Down The House" Peterson yesterday? Nifong does have a job -- it's going to jail! Funny, I always thought a "job" meant something you got paid for doing; I didn't know that a criminal paying his debt to society could be a "job"... unless they meant the references to Nifong's "integrity and goodness", which could be considered a snow job.

Debrah said...

If where you live has a Barnes & Noble or a Borders and they don't have copies of the book.....go to the manager and demand that they order some for the store.

If they do not, call the main corporate office and complain.

This is an important case for our justice system. It happened in our midst and was covered nationally and internationally.

You deserve to know WHY your local bookstores do not have the book displayed.

Do something! Get active!

Michael said...

Cute kids. That baby has good motor control. Did you see the fingers grabbing the paper?

bn.com has the book shipping in 2-3 days which means that they don't have them available. When they are available, they ship in 24 hours. Membership price is $16.97 (I have a membership as bn.com delivers faster than Amazon - when they have it).

The sales rank is 33 right now.

Michael said...

The Barnes and Nobles stores in Nashua and Manchester NH report the book in stock. Salem NH shows that it isn't in stock. What's really odd is that the book isn't in stock in MA B&N stores. I was surprised that Burlington, MA didn't have them in stock.

Just saw a short clip of what appeared to be Nifong getting out of jail this morning.

Anonymous said...

As I posted last night on Liestoppers, went to Clyborne and Webster B&N in Chicago on Tuesday, asked for UPI. They looked it up and said they had one copy on order. Plan to check other B&N locations on the Northside today as well as Borders. I am very disappointed in both chains.

Anonymous said...

To add to the NH post above, Portsmouth, NH Barnes & Noble has no copies and it is only available by special order. Our local in town bookstore also has no copies and it is only available by special order. I ordered from Amazon and it arrived this morning. Yay!

Gary Packwood said...

Locomotive Breath 8:24 said...

....Apparently these decisions are made at the local level by all those English majors who graduate from PC places like Duke's English department and who are reduced to working in bookstores because they can't find better jobs. (As opposed to those English majors who do get good jobs.)
::
Well that is a very good point and it has the added benefit of being the truth.

Perhaps if they read the book themselves they will enroll in a one year nursing program and become a SANE nurse.
::
GP

kcjohnson9 said...

To the 8.07am:

I urge you to re-read the sentence, which says, "Imagine what Group members might have said if they didn’t want to be 'on the side of students.'"

I quite deliberately did not say "all" Group members. That said, I don't recall any Group member publicly rebuking either Farred or Baker for their racist statements. Apparently the Group wasn't too concerned with faculty racism.

Anonymous said...

While Page hopes that Nifong will learn something from the night he spent in jail, today's N&O shows that Victoria Peterson is as clueless as ever:

"We love you here in Durham," Peterson said to Nifong. "The people love you. We support you, and we still support you, and we feel that you are innocent."

With friends like that...

Anonymous said...

I'll go by the local B&N this morning here in Houston and ask for the book. The more "buzz' the better. I'm going to give it to the college counselor at my kid's former high school.
TexasMom

Debrah said...

"Think about it. If any institutions should be engaged in the critical reasoning that it takes to analyze situations like these, weighing claims and counterclaims, and sorting out facts from rumors, it is the media and college professors. The university, of all places, should teach not only good ideas but also the rational thinking that leads one to a lifetime of producing good ideas."

Clarence Page must be a rightwinger!

And a rabid one!

Michael said...

For those that don't know Clarence Page, I used to see him on the McLaughlin Group and he was one of the guys way over to the left and one of the few (or only) AA guys on the show.

So he got it right. And it is a great endorsement.

Anonymous said...

KC - Keep up the good work.

Your critics only reveal their small-mindedness.

I have ordered two dozen copies of your book and intend to distribute them to my friends who contributed to ATAF, and elsewhere, in this memorable struggle against injustice.

Michael said...

From Debrah's link:

"We love you here in Durham," Peterson said to Nifong. "The people love you. We support you, and we still support you, and we feel that you are innocent."

But Nifong had more to say. He was thankful of the supporters who surrounded him during the past two days.

"It means a whole lot to me, it really does," he said.

As to the few people who heckled Nifong as he walked to an awaiting tan Volvo:

--------------------

I wonder what happened to the RAV4 that he was seen exiting his Bar trial from.

I wonder if MN's supporters will continue to support him when they get their property tax bills in the future. They can add a line to the property tax bill for Mike Nifong surcharge.

Anonymous said...

KC: Must have been a typo, but did you really identify Page, Kinsley, Stossen as "right-wing?" Please make a correction.

kcjohnson9 said...

To the 11.08:

It was a sarcastic reference. We've seen over the last few days a variety of Group defenders suggesting that only right-wingers find the book's arguments persuasive.

Debrah said...

TO 11:08AM--

You must turn on your sarcasm radar screen.

BTW, I was also being sarcastic as well.

KC's critics try desperately to make him into a rightwinger....but all these "progressive" liberals are endorsing his book.

And with high praise!

Anonymous said...

Your op-ed piece was published in today's Houston Chronicle...YAY!!!

I had some trouble getting the book from B&N but I reported over on the Liestoppers forum. I ordered it and they said it should be in next week (5-6 days).

Anonymous said...

40 Comments Close this window Jump to comment form
Anonymous said...
Tonight (Sept. 7th) about 8 p.m. I got the last copy they had at the B&N on Congress Ave. in Boynton Beach, Florida.

9/8/07 12:18 AM


I made the first comment last night. Given what I've read this morning, maybe I should add more detail:

I went to the B&N and did not see UPI among the scores of "New Arrivals" in the stacks near the front of the store. I then asked an employee, who seemed not to have heard of the book; he did a computer search. I then followed him far to the back of the store to the "True Crime" section. There, at the bottom of the shelves, was one copy of UPI. Since the books around it looked loose, it seemed there could have been 2-3 other copies that had already been sold. Interestingly, there were 7-8 copies of "It's Not About The Truth" right next to it.

Anonymous said...

I got my 2 pre-orders from amazon 2 days ago. Since then, I have savored every page, reading chapters over and over. Although I have been at DIW since nearly the beginning (and at LS and JinC) to check in only...)I am still consumed by the detail. I try to read it from the perspective of someone who only watched Nancy Grace and Newsweek.... is it truly credible from a civilian's understanding?. Resounding YES. Nobody (except Victoria and G88) can walk away from a single paragraph. Only an intellectually dishonest person cannot reel from the impact of the facts.

Anonymous said...

Barnes & Noble and Borders should be ashamed. You would think that books stories would want to sell books — not base everything on the ideology of the book store executives and left-wing staff. What a crock! It's time for someone on the right to start a national book store chain and challenge these ridiculous stores. In the meantime, use Amazon.

Anonymous said...

KC wrote:

"I quite deliberately did not say "all" Group members. That said, I don't recall any Group member publicly rebuking either Farred or Baker for their racist statements. Apparently the Group wasn't too concerned with faculty racism."

You didn't include all, but I think most readers would believe you were implying as much, especially since it was in response to the Duke Instructor's generalization of the whole group.

You may be right about other group members not speaking out publicly against Farred or Baker's remarks. However, it isn't fair to then draw the immediate inference that they weren't concerned about them.

Debrah said...

This is funny from a Friday H-S report. I see nothing today about Mikey being sprung on their website. They, no doubt, sleep in on weekends:

When Nifong's crowd of supporters appeared at the top of Pettigrew and Mangum, one woman ran up to the group, screaming "He's a liar and a cheat!"

"What a cruel joke," she said of the show of support. "Yeah, let's just throw out all the laws."

"He's filthy. He's a scumbag," shouted one man who refused to give his name.

"How's it feel to be a common criminal?" another man asked loudly.

"You got what you deserved," yelled a young man filming Nifong with a digital camera while speaking on a cell phone.

Though he endured taunts, Nifong did not suffer threats such as those directed at Reade Seligmann when the former Duke lacrosse player made his first appearance in Durham County Superior Court in the spring of 2006 to address the false rape charges brought by Nifong.

Members of the New Black Panther Party, deemed a racist hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, called Seligmann a rapist and, in court, said he was "a dead man walking." Despite the threat, nobody was removed from the courtroom.

Friday's situation spawned far less serious, but testy, exchanges.

"You don't know him," one female supporter shot back at a woman heckler. The supporter squeezed the arm of Nifong's son to console him as they watched Nifong walk through the door to booking and intake.

A news photographer said some members of the Nifong crowd harangued him and attempted to interfere with him doing his job.

All the while a news helicopter hovered overhead as a small battery of local television cameras was scattered around the scene.

However, the crowd of reporters, photographers and onlookers was minuscule compared to that which gathered outside the jail on May 15 last year. That's the day former lacrosse defendant David Evans was indicted on charges of raping, kidnapping and committing a first-degree sex offense against an exotic dancer during an off-campus party on North Buchanan Boulevard.

When Evans walked out of the jail to hold a news conference and declare his innocence, news representatives -- national as well as local -- and bystanders literally tripped over each other to get within hearing range.

Evans, Seligmann and codefendant Collin Finnerty have since been exonerated.

In April, state Attorney General Roy Cooper pronounced the three innocent and upbraided Nifong for prosecuting them in the first place.

And in June, the N.C. State Bar ruled that Nifong must be stripped of his law license for committing 11 ethics violations in connection with the case.

Finally, Nifong ended nearly three decades of work in the Durham District Attorney's Office by resigning on July 2.

His troubles still may not be ended.

Anonymous said...

CostCo at North Pointe in Durham has an abundant supply of the book @ $15.99. I can't say whether this applies to their other outlets. To bad the source notes had to be published separately, on the web site, though including the extra 48 pages would have made for a more expensive tome. Still, it's good to have them readily available.

Anonymous said...

Called two Books a Million Stores in Jacksonville, Florida. Neither one had a copy and new nothing about the store.

When I explained to the clerk that it was about the Duke Lacrosse fake rape case, she said "oh, that's the one about that guy, uh, that, uh." . . .

I filled in the sentence telling her that the guy she was thinking about was the prosecutor why brought false charges against the three students in order to win an election and increase his pension.

Her reply: "That's not very nice."

I guess "not very nice" is one way to say it.

I then asked her the question. "If you had a son or daughter in college and he or she were falsly charged with a henious crime that never happened, how would you feel?

Her reply.

"I wouldn't like it."

He lack of enthusiasm or feeling for what UPI is all about prompted me to call four additional stores in the city (no copies in stock at any of them but they would order) in attempt to build some sort of buzz for the book.

Hopefully, as Stuart and KC give additional interviews, more and more people will become interested in what went down at Duke.

Anonymous said...

The oxymora of left-pogressives, pundits, and intellectuals is too much. The only un-innocent here are these tired groups of asinine groups reasoning and posturing about the "truth" which they never know. To them and for them and their enablers from the beginning of things "its not about the truth." It never was, and they do not miss a beat. They go unpunished. To them it is all about entertainment and acdvancing their points of view. There is no core culture of right and wrong that can be applied to the facts, but rather, what must be applied is their metanarrative. The problem with their metanarrative is that facts intrude . . . the facts that address reality. One further comment, it would seem the more facts intrude on these ideologes the more they retreat into their previously concieved "wonderlands" without regard (irregardless would seem a better word) for these facts.

Anonymous said...

A Duke Instructor says

“When I said that the listening statement had nothing to do with the case, I meant that Nifong did not use the statement in trying to make his case; that is, it did not facilitate the case against the three defendants.”

Oh, so only statements that Nifong cited to make his case actually had something to do with the case.

That's a strange way to measure. By that standard, the incendiary remarks of the NC NAACP, UBUNTU, "Shut Up and Teach", the NYT, Newsweek, N & O, H-S, Amanda Marcotte and a whole host of others had nothing to do with the case either.

Were they also simply statements that were decrying racism and sexism in general?

Exactly what does A Duke Instructor really know about what and who "facilitated the case against the three defendants?" Since it is unlikely that Instructor spent time hanging around Nifong while he plotted his case strategy, not much.

Was the Listening Ad the springboard to launch Nifong's frame of the 3 Lax players? Certainly not. We know he did it to get elected. But that was just the means to the end. He really did it for the money -- a pension increase -- and to satisfy his ego that a lawyer of his stature deserved to hold the position of DA after such a sterling career as an ADA for over 30 years.

Nonetheless, Instructor will have to admit that it didn't hurt Nifong's cause to know that several Duke faculty were in complete support of his position that 3 Lax players (and any 3 at that) were going to be indicted because "something happened."

The listening statement had nothing to do with the case? That doesn't even pass the smell test.

Anonymous said...

4th mistake in the book, page 54, lines 10-11:

"... neighbors complained of Dukies (not lacrosse throwing beer cans and ..."

The line break follows "lacrosse". There is at least a word and the closing parenthesis and perhaps a whole line missing.

You need better editors, KC and Stuart.

RRH

kcjohnson9 said...

To the 11.37:

Right. The other Group members just weren't concerned about their colleagues' racist public statements to say or do anything about them.

Debrah said...

TO RRH--

Yes, but what's the point?

I see very few books whose ongoing saga is changing each day.......the story being written in real time and having to be updated constantly.....which do not have some small typos, etc......

Only moronic navel-gazers are bothered by it.

Why waste the time?

Debrah said...

TO 11:37AM--

Most people aren't in the business of reading minds.

If those professors wanted to speak out and be heard, they certainly would have done so.

It's difficult to shut them up when opining about other topics, it seems.

Anonymous said...

"T. Edwards" is Timoty Tyson. Just an FYI.

Anonymous said...

KC Johnson wrote "Right. The other Group members just weren't concerned about their colleagues' racist public statements to say or do anything about them."

Prof. Johnson: I admire your patience in this blog in addressing baseless and vitriolic attacks against your writings, but I think your arguments are falling upon many deaf ears.

The G88 defenders can see no wrongdoing in the listening statement and its progeny and therefore can see no wrongdoing in those who remained silent in response.

That members of the academy - who claim to care about civil and human rights - could not recognize such an egregious violation of civil rights "in their own back yard" is a disgrace but a little unbelievable. More believable and even more disgraceful is that they DID recognize an egregious violation of civil rights "in their own back yard", and not only ignored, but also supported it.

Anonymous said...

Why was not Victoria Peterson given an opportunity to review the manuscript and correct the many errors?

Anonymous said...

Couldn't find a copy at the Charlottesville, VA B&N. They did have Coach Pressler's book though.

Anonymous said...

KC, interested to know if your own Brooklyn College's bookstore, which is also owned by B&N, will be carrying your book.

Also, will CUNY's inhouse publications be mentioning it in their newsletter?

If I get a chance, I will check the Park Slope B&N. They have a "Brooklyn Authors" section. UPI should be placed there. The Brooklyn Heights branch probably has a Brooklyn Authors section as well.

Anonymous said...

"Right. The other Group members just weren't concerned about their colleagues' racist public statements to say or do anything about them."

What happened to the "public" clause. Because that's all you or I know.

I wouldn't be surprised if some of them weren't concerned. I also wouldn't be surprised if some of them didn't even know about the remarks. Would you be at all surprised that some did not follow the case as closely as you?

But painting the entire group with a broad brush on the basis of what they *haven't* said or done in response to these two is not fair.

Anonymous said...

B&N in Amherst, NY (near Buffalo) does not have your book. Borders Express, also in Amherst (Boulevard Mall), does not have it either.

Anonymous said...

Be forewarned: B & N strongly suggested that I special order the Presler book, It's Not About the Truth. They do not diclose that this was an additional charge. When I picked up my copy under my name at the front desk, I noticed that there was a table of his books displayed. I had to demand that they take this shipping charge off my book because I could have picked up a copy (free of the additional special shipping & handling charge) off the display table in their store. They complied. And I will continue to be a customer in the future.

Debrah said...

I can't be around people like Timothy Tyson...and this is not just a line.

I literally can't be around people like that. I have a very weak stomach.

So many people you know and with whom you come in contact everyday always have to inject religion and the Lord into everything that seems challenging.

Even athletes and actors talk about the Lord when accepting an award for something.

I'm not putting it down and have absolutely nothing against religion. Practice yours. I also have no prejudices against any particular religion.

Just practice it and keep it to yourselves. I don't need to know about it anymore than I need to know which sexual position is your favorite.

So many educated and successful people seem to lose their brains automatically when they go into their religious spiels.

I know for a fact that religion has become a refuge and a crutch for people to mouth off about when they are in a bind and cannot justify or explain themselves honestly.

It's in the Lord's hands.

I'm trusting in the Lord. It's His will.

He never gives us more than He knows we can handle.

I praise G/d the creator. Without Him I couldn't have done anything.

The Lord tests all of us, but with his help I will get through this.

People like Mike Nifong and his imbecilic enablers....along with rotund opportunists like NAACP's "Rev." Barber and Timothy Tyson talk about the Lord and use religion in almost everything they do.

I find this widely accepted practice repulsive.

Live your life and accept your actions as your own. Keep your religion to yourself.

Where was the Lord back in the Spring of 2006 when all these bums were railroading innocent people?

The Lord must have given them more than they could handle this time.

Anonymous said...

There seem to be so few copies of UPI available at Borders and B&N. Hopefully the publisher will rectify this when it becomes clear (as it should be by now) that KC's book is in demand--unlike the other two books on the subject.

No copies of UPI are available in the B&N stores in D.C. I was told the closest B&N with books in stock was in Bethesda.

Also, the Borders at Pentagon City had no copies and had no plans on ordering any.

Cute baby. I wonder if Nifong tried to hire him to help with his defense once he learned that D.S.'s resume included research for Prof. Johnson.

wayne fontes said...

To 11:37

Could you expand on this comment?

You may be right about other group members not speaking out publicly against Farred or Baker's remarks. However, it isn't fair to then draw the immediate inference that they weren't concerned about them.

Grant Farred clearly lied about the lacrosse players. He didn't draw even the mildest rebuke from the G88. I feel that it is reasonable to conclude that they weren't concerned about Farred lying since they not one person made any attempt to set the record straight.

Debrah said...

TO 2:20PM--

Notice the baby's eyes in the first photo--(reading the manuscript....months younger before the book was finished).

His eyes are so focused as to be actually reading it.

LIS!

Anonymous said...

Those who do not have the good fortune to live in Chicago should know that Clarence Page always shows this sort of clarity of thought and expression no matter what he is writing about.

Anonymous said...

I bought the last copy at Borders in St. Petersburg, FL three days ago. They hadn't ordered many.

The biased politics at Borders is so obvious though, any book by a liberal author has more of a supply and gets a prominent display, conservative authors have a more meager supply and get relegated to obscurity in their stores. I've noticed this patterm for years.

Same with B&N.

Anyone else notice this political posturing at book stores?

Anonymous said...

Gary Packwood:

Please use care with those general nursing references. It takes more than a year of killer study to be in a position to be a SANE nurse. I would assume there are plenty of nurses who hold KC's work on this in high esteem, myself included.
If you are ever seriously ill and have the good fortune to recover, you may find that your most reassuring memories of that experience are those of the caring, expert nursing care you recieved. Most nurses are not "angry", though some are, as with most professions, maybe especially the helping ones. I usually enjoy your contributions otherwise, though.

Anonymous said...

Good marketing starts at home, put up the standard (recognizable) AMAZON link.

Or rise and fall on a hodgepodge of distribution kinks.

LE

Anonymous said...

KC just FYI. No copies had been ordered by Barnes & Noble in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Thanks again for all you did for Dave, Reade, and Collin and their families. Your hard work is greatly appreciated.

Anonymous said...

"Grant Farred clearly lied about the lacrosse players. He didn't draw even the mildest rebuke from the G88."

Where did he do so? In the Herald Sun? I'd be surprised if more than a handful of Duke faculty read that paper.

But let's assume for the moment that some of the G88 were aware of his remarks and didn't approve. All we really know about is what was or was not said in the public forum. We have no idea what was said privately. Not everyone writes a letter to the paper or an op-ed piece every time they read something they find despicable.

Debrah said...

TO 3:25PM--

That's part of it...sure.

Another is that their employees have to be led a bit.

These people work in shifts and really don't have the time or take the time to read the books in their midst and many probably don't keep close tabs on the issues of the day.

Over the past week I've learned a lot about this. One store clerk at Barnes & Noble assured me the book would be in the front window for about 3 weeks.

Another told me that it would be in the crime section.

Still another told me that UPI has a prominent display table inside the store.

It seems they change things according to shifts. The store where I got my books--because my Amazon orders will take longer, I got a few at B&N--had it in the front window....then I found out they put it on a display table inside.

They told me today that the book is still selling steadily at the store. Then I asked to talk to the manager.

I was told that since the author will be speaking at Duke Tuesday they will put it back in the front window display......

......along with the Clinton book, etc.......

I ended by asking them if we all hadn't had enough of Clinton. UPI is new subject matter.

LOL!!!

Anyway, my point is that we all have to make our concerns known and see they are acted on.

Anonymous said...

Your book is not in the Barnes & Noble stores in the Bellevue Wa area--had them check their computer listing.

And, of course, Bellevue is the home to Melinda Gates.

Might want your publisher to contact them.

Anonymous said...

Not in stock in Chicago....

Locations Hours Phone Number Availability
1. B. Dalton Booksellers
The Merchandise Mart
Suite #204
222 The Merchandise Mart
Chicago, IL 60654
Distance: 6.07 miles
View map
Sun CLOSED,
Mon-Fri 9-6,
Sat 10-3 312-329-1881 Not in stock
2. Barnes & Noble Booksellers
State and Elm
1130 North State Street
Chicago, IL 60610
Distance: 6.99 miles
View map
Sun 10-10,
Mon-Sat 9-10 312-280-8155 Not in stock
3. Barnes & Noble Booksellers
Clybourn
Webster Place
1441 West Webster Avenue
Chicago, IL 60614
Distance: 8.76 miles
View map
Sun 10-10,
Mon-Sat 9-11 773-871-3610 Not in stock
4. Barnes & Noble Booksellers
Lincoln Park
Lincoln Park
659 West Diversey
Chicago, IL 60614
Distance: 9.21 miles
View map
Sun 10-9,
Mon-Sat 10-10 773-871-9004 Not in stock

Anonymous said...

I today got my 3 copies from Amazon, but after reading this thread, called Barnes & Noble in Lafayette, LA: not in stock. I chastised them for not stocking a hot book.

This failure to carry is not local B&N failure. Makes me (more) suspicious.

But at least Clarence Page, whose predictable cant I abjured many years ago, can see the light. All is not lost, though the game remains in jeopardy.

Tom

Anonymous said...

Pre-ordered my copy on Amazon months ago...and haven't put it down since it arrived! I've followed this case and this blog for the past year but to see it all woven together so intelligently is mind-boggling. I was largely unaware of the extent of active persecution by the Duke administrators...the outrageousness of their actions, not even considering the Gang's terrorism of the team, enrages me all over again!! Superior job, KC. This should be required reading at Duke, other universities (specifically law schools), and police academies around the country.

Even though I already have my copy, be sure I'll check every bookstore I can in the Redlands, CA area.

Anonymous said...

Debrah said...
TO RRH--

Yes, but what's the point?

I see very few books whose ongoing saga is changing each day.......the story being written in real time and having to be updated constantly.....which do not have some small typos, etc......

Only moronic navel-gazers are bothered by it.

Why waste the time?

9/8/07 12:54 PM


As a former newspaperman -- including stints as a copy editor, and as a brief-writing attorney, and as a Virgo, I probably resemble that remark :) RRH

I hope you don't think I'm criticizing KC for the errors. These are errors that the publisher made.

Anonymous said...

Nice, 4:06, your best argument is that some of the Gang of 88 didn't shoot their weapons while the rest of their platoon tried to kill the children. Do you have a blog? Where can I subscribe to your newsletter?

Do you expect us to believe these narcissistic idiots did not lap up the media coverage minute-by-minute? It's not like they were busy in the middle of a big scientific experiment or something.

Please point to ONE article or editorial or other public work any member of the Gang of 88 put out that called for the recusal of Nifong, called for the Duke Administration to stick up for their obviously innocent students, or admitted that they had made a mistake in joining the LYNCH MOB! Thanks in advance. P.S. Please link.

Gary Packwood said...

Anonymous 3:28 said...

...Gary Packwood:
...Please use care with those general nursing references. It takes more than a year of killer study to be in a position to be a SANE nurse. I would assume there are plenty of nurses who hold KC's work on this in high esteem, myself included.
::
I was going to let this just glide past me until I remembered that we have mew members of our blog community who are children.

For those new younger members I suggest you just ignore anonymous comments because they are after all, anonymous.

Never allow yourself to be provoked by an invisible irritant. Especially if you are a lacrosse player.
::
GP

Anonymous said...

I am fascinated by the "not in stock" postings. This is simply anticipated demand followed by a functionary's supply. Rather than say "I'll just order it from Amazon," it'd be better if folks ordered from their local store. If enough people special order it, then the buyers will wake up and say ..."Hey, people want to buy this book. Perhaps I should order some."

Requests for UPI, met with we don't have it but we can order it for you ... with no order ... does not register in the corporate database. B&N's corporate database tracks orders ... if they see an influx of orders,...they will stock the book.

That's Economics 101.

Debrah said...

TO RRH @ 5:49PM--

I'm sorry if I seemed harsh. Should have chosen my words more carefully.

Of course I understand your concern with little typos. I'm usually the same, but not with books.

BTW...I even have to have all the labels to everything in my cabinets turned around evenly with the front showing when you open the doors. LOL!!!

In many ways I'm like that Monk character on cable, but not quite that bad...just compulsive about things being in order around me.

The comforter on my bed has to look as though no one sleeps in the bed before I am satisfied things have been "made up".

So I really appreciate your attention to detail.

Also, thanks for being the first poster to identify your astrological sign. LOL!!!

I don't take it seriously, but I am constantly amazed how close the profiles are to people I know. Had my chart plotted 3 times and it's quite interesting. Had my palm read once in NY on Bleecker Street. Nothing came to pass.

BTW...I'm a Scorpion. :>)

Anonymous said...

Debrah,

Given your stinging rejoinders here, I can well imagine that you are a Scorpion, but did you mean Scorpio? *Developing strange mental image here...* RRH

Anonymous said...

Prof Johnson:

Do you have an opinion or reaction to this?

Anonymous 3:28 said...

...Gary Packwood:
...Please use care with those general nursing references. It takes more than a year of killer study to be in a position to be a SANE nurse. I would assume there are plenty of nurses who hold KC's work on this in high esteem, myself included.
::
I was going to let this just glide past me until I remembered that we have mew members of our blog community who are children.

For those new younger members I suggest you just ignore anonymous comments because they are after all, anonymous.

Never allow yourself to be provoked by an invisible irritant. Especially if you are a lacrosse player.
::
GP

Debrah said...

TO RHH--

Yes, I'm on the very last day of Scorpio--November 22.

That's just the lingo; however, I can well understand why you want to avoid the noun version of yours....Virgo--the Virgin.

BTW, my ascendant sign is Virgo. You really have to have your entire chart plotted. The silly junk in the daily newspaper is what it is--silly.

LOL!!!

Debrah said...

The news reports said that Mikey had spaghetti for dinner while in jail. Then someone posted on another thread that he had a chicken dish and complained that it was too dry.

That commenter might have been joking; however, the N&O reported that he had spaghetti.

LOL!!!

Don't know why exactly, but that is so funny.

Spaghetti

kcjohnson9 said...

To the 6.49:

Yes, this case has brought to the fore some very impressive nurses (Kathleen Eckelt comes to mind) who were horrified by what Tara Levicy had done; and provided everyone (me included) with a hands-on version of how professional nurses behave.

Anonymous said...

Debrah said...
TO RHH--

Yes, I'm on the very last day of Scorpio--November 22.

That's just the lingo; however, I can well understand why you want to avoid the noun version of yours....Virgo--the Virgin.


I'll remember you while I'm eating Turkey, and the only thing virginal about me is ... hmmm, nevermind :)

Anonymous said...

All,

The "Duke Instructor" is probably a 22-26 year-old graduate student in the humanities, younger than some of the students he/she is teaching. They have no teaching experience, little life experience, and are not faculty members in the traditional sense. I had a similar twerp for an English Seminar while at Duke...hate to pay for that kind of "education".

I think the Duke students missed a golden opportunity here. There is a chant the students do at a basketball game when a player on the opposing team fouls out. Can you imagine how funny it would have been if Liefong's perp walk had been lined with hundreds of Duke students, all standing, waving their hands chanting

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh............................................SEE YA!", with a creshendo as he cleared to doors of the jail.

Too funny.

ES Duke 1990

PS What kind of loser could not bring more than 10-15 people (many of these relatives) to make a public show of support?

Anonymous said...

Should read

"...SEE YA!"

ES

Debrah said...

TO RHH--

:>)

Anonymous said...

Hello, I'm a white male who doesn't really care or even think about Michael Moore, but doesn't want anyone to have license to deploy lies and hate speech upon someone simply because they are a non-destitute, white male.

Waheema Lubiano's contribution to my comment and, one can only assume, to the world in general is "forthcoming".

Anonymous said...

"hands-on version of how professional nurses behave"

Oy!

Debrah said...

My relatives in Seattle were able to get the book at a Barnes & Noble there.

They live on Alki Avenue...right off Puget Sound...so maybe it depends on which B&N location.

Bellevue is outside Seattle. You might have to ask them to put in an order.

I think B&N has about 800 stores in that area.

GaryB said...

Was #41 on Amazon when I looked, not bad, probably more readers than the combined output of the 88 nits. But that's a good thing.

Debrah said...

If Mikey can't find work, he can take his show on the road to Japan. They might give him a whirl.

Over there, everyone loves Kappa Mikey!

Debrah said...

TO ES Duke 1990--

I agree with you.

It would have been quite effective if Duke students had organized some kind of display during Mikey's perp walk.

He's essentially been allowed to slide on so many levels.

Never understimate the lifetime effect of a grown man being humiliated and embarrassed. That is much more significant than a one-day jail sentence...no matter what other attorneys wish to say.

Anonymous said...

KC, the Barnes and Noble store on FM 1960 in Houston has ordered two books and they haven't arrived as of yet. 2 books? Anyway you asked that we let you know. Keep up the great work. J.

Anonymous said...

On the blog BlueNC someone made a complaining post "Will We Ever Be Free of Nifong Stories?" There's an interesting answer from MJBricks, mentioning the book UPI. The poster who asks the Nifong question is mad his taxes might have to be raised to cover the lawsuits when it's the fault of a bad D.A. I wonder if that poster ever tried to stop the disgrace that was going on in Durham. Or did he/she just wait til now to complain?

Debrah said...

Also, the Borders at Pentagon City had no copies and had no plans on ordering any.

Just saw this.

I love this place. A prime location.

Anyone in the D.C. area, make sure this problem is remedied.

Debrah said...

TO 8:56PM--

Nifong Stories?

Debrah said...

From what I've gleaned, the bookstores in the state of Texas need some attention.

Many have complained that they do not have the book down there.

It's a big state. They need more books.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Page writes "I hope Nifong spent his night in the pokey thinking about the young lives he ruined."

Doubtful. Nifong has shown that he is completely unable to think of anyone but himself.

Debrah said...

Does anyone remember the film "Misery" with James Caan and Kathy Bates?

The book was written by Stephen King.

So twisted and scary.

The Caan character, Paul Sheldon, was a fiction writer. Every time he finished a book in a secluded cabin in Colorado where he went to write, he'd open a bottle of Dom Perignon and have one cigarette.

That's what KC should do......(even though I hate cigarettes.)

Most important, when he's traveling around for book signings, he should avoid all Kathy Bates-esque clinging characters like a plague.

If someone walks up to him and says...."Hi, I'm your number one fan."......he should run for his life!

LOL!!!

Anonymous said...

Went to Barnes and Noble in Greenville, SC to buy a SECOND copy for a lawyer friend ( bought my first one on Amazon) and when I inquired they at first said they didn't have it. When I asked if they had an area where the most recent books were displayed, they pointed to the center aisle. Well, Obama's was there, but not K. C.'s!

So I went BACK to the information desk, and asked again. They lady seemed irritated, but grudginly trudged over to the "Real Crime" section, and there it was. On the BOTTOM shelf... all 4 copies.

I'm wondering what the reasoning is with Barnes and Noble. I thought they were in the business to sell books.

Who is putting pressure on them to hide the "Innocent" book????

Anonymous said...

KC, I believe your publisher has a responsibility as far as adequate distribution of "UPI." Re-read your contract to be sure that the publisher is fulfilling its responsibilities.

Besides the publisher, the bookstore chains have a big say in what sells and what does not. Book sales in bookstores are based on display and placement; if a book is hidden away it will not sell unless you have a motivated buyer looking for it. The chains will respond to customer compplaints and to an avalanche of special orders.

You will find, if you haven't already, that the publishing industry is cut-throat. Authors need to be wary.

redcybra said...

While reading the comments in the Chronicle, I found this nugget:


John Steed
posted 9/05/07 @ 9:46 PM EST
Scoff at KC Johnson and his book as much as you want, but it's the Editor's Pick in the latest Readers' Digest and is zooming up the best-sellers lists. The 88 are all named and shamed in the Readers' Digest, which has a huge circulation. Everyone in every grocery store checkout line in the nation will soon be able to recite their names by heart ("Abe, Albers, Allison ..."). Whatever else they do in life (unless they apologize), they will always be the 88 backstabbers. They, and Brodhead, can share this epitaph from Macbeth:

"And that which should accompany old age,
As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends,
I must not look to have; but, in their stead,
Curses, not loud but deep .... "

We can only hope....

Bob Roddis said...

In the northern Detroit suburbs, the B&N in Royal Oak, Grosse Pointe and Troy had no copies and asked if I wanted to special order.

Anonymous said...

Debrah,

I quite agree...as a full-grown member of the XY persusasion, public humiliation is quite a fearful thing. This is why I was not upset 'Fong only got a day. The actual conviction itself was what really hurt him. Of course, losing his law license and job are also pretty harsh for him, but he gets no pity from me.

Did anyone think Nifong kind of had a wild-eye, David Koresh, messianic kind of thing going on on his way into the joint? Grasping hands awkwardly and perhaps too hard? Holding his arms like he was doing the "M" in "YMCA" and suffering from an unfortunate axillary rash?

Was he scared, humiliated, or did he have the lunatic certainty of his actions common to wack-jobs everywhere?

ES Duke 1990

Anonymous said...

As I mentioned to K.C. in a pm, I tried to get a copy of upi while in Charleston S.C. at a Waldenbooks store in the lobby of the Charleston Place hotel. Did not have a copy but offered to order it for me. I ended up ordering copies from Amazon with a 1 to 5 week delivery. Can't wait!! I am presently at my summer home in the N.C. mountains..would love to have a signed copy. any ideas on how to get a couple??

trinity60

Debrah said...

TO 10:58PM--

I am using one of the many copies of UPI to get Spook a signed copy at Page on Tuesday night....since he lives far away from the Triangle.

Find someone on this blog to do the same for you. Then you can reimburse them later.

Anonymous said...

Deborah says: "The Caan character, Paul Sheldon, was a fiction writer. Every time he finished a book in a secluded cabin in Colorado where he went to write, he'd open a bottle of Dom Perignon and have one cigarette.

That's what KC should do......(even though I hate cigarettes.)"

Cigarettes, hell! Leave those miserable weeds for the members of the Duke faculty. KC and Taylor should fire up those big cigars Winston Churchill smoked! Celebrate well, gentlemen. Keep up the good work.

My copies are on order from Amazon - the local B&N in the Soviet of Washington doesn't believe in selling things not approved by the local politburo, so UPI is nowhere to be seen, but can be ordered. For an extra charge, of course. Forget it B&N, I'm doing business with Amazon.

Anonymous said...

trinity60 10:58pm

DUKE
Page Auditorium
Tues Sept 11 7:30pm

BE THERE

Anonymous said...

I received two orders, four each, from Amazon.

One was provided to my wife a Duke graduate. Hopefully she will have her book club elect to read it as well as many have college-aged children. We no longer give money to Duke and will not. Our daughter is considering Duke and at this point I will do everything I can to discourage that choice. She has a fighting chance to get in.

The next copy is being sent to my father-in-law, a Duke graduate, with a recomendation to not donate any money. He lives in middle-America.

The third will go to my sister-in-law and her husband who live in the mid-atlantic with one in college and another who is a white, athletic, male, who lives in the wrong zip code. She too is a Duke graduate.

The fourth is going to a friend who is a prolific letter writer and email hound. He has three boys.

The fifth went to a house manager of a fraternity with over one hundred members. I expect the book to be a crisis management road-map.

The sixth is going to another friend with a son in college in another state. I will ask him to pass that copy around to others once he has read the book.

The seventh is going to our local library.

The eighth will be for my personal library.

I'll likely order more at Christmas as we have numerous friends with boys in college.

The system may or may not be failing us. KC and Stuart have done a monumental thing in exposing the many frauds, academic and otherwise, associated with this hoax.

By the way there are many, many details in the book that I don't recall reading on this blog. Most notably are the anecdotes that deal with some really stand-up people that supported the young men, team, and coach.

The only complaint from me is the restraint shown by the authors.

Brodhead must be fired. Accepting a resignation is not enough.

CGM must go to jail.

The others? Well, let's see what happens.

I really hope that criminal and/or civil trial(s) are held so that the details become public.

It really is selfish, but I do hope the families take these people to the mat in order to memorialize the evil.

So many must be held accountable...

Anonymous said...

DUKE
Page Auditorium
Tues Sept 11 7:30pm

It's 7 p.m.

Anonymous said...

tonight dartmouth tried to pack the court with ALUMNI who would vote with the liberal slime equivalent to the group of 88 at duke...

i hope they sue for due process ...just like chavez changing the constitution so he always wins...

may the froup 88 be welcome to the tryanny that befalls them in venezuela..or russia..or wherever their real moral anti american loyaltes lie

Anonymous said...

I've spend a fair amount of time in bookstores in a major southern city (and have lived in 3 southern states over the last few years)--believe me, I have never seen any of the 3 Duke Lacrosse books without asking around. Never.

Amazon is nice: once you buy a book---> they send you dozens of other book ideas relating to that book (Netflix does the same thing).

By the way, my (personal) impression is that Borders is the worst. They tend to have more of the "group of 88" types. Kids are not as welcome. They often place gender oriented mags right next to National Review or Commentary, etc. If you try to return a defective book they tend to be a little annoyed.In general, they are not as clean as their competitors.

B + N is usually the sort of place where the manager will politely listen to customers (therefore, each and everyone of you out there nicely ask for the manager on duty at B + N--> I truly believe he or she will listen. Its a reasonable chain in my view.

That said, I didnt fool around this time--> I preordered from Amazon.

Mark my words--> this book will hit #1.

Anonymous said...

Hey--thats a good idea---> I plan to do the same===>esp with the local library.

Debrah said...

TO ES Duke @ 10:45PM--

David Koresh!

I can't believe you bring up that guy. I almost forgot about him.

Yes, you have hit on an intriguing detail that we all have seen from Mikey, but have yet to name it.

He possesses a real lunacy. Almost messianic in nature.

He's been steeped inside the Durham Lib-Dem-archaic-sixties-horror-show for so long that he, IMO, actually believes he is a Morris Deas junior.

You have hit it. David Koresh=Mikey.

Anonymous said...

Borders (Bailey's Crossroads VA-outside DC) said tonight that they didn't stock the book yet. Came home and ordered it from Amazon.

One Spook said...

Debrah writes @ 11:09PM:

I am using one of the many copies of UPI to get Spook a signed copy at Page on Tuesday night....since he lives far away from the Triangle.


An act for which Spook is humbly grateful ... thank you, Miss Debrah.

One Spook

Anonymous said...

Got my copy of UPI finally...only had to drive 35mi each way to get to a B&N (Lewisville TX) that had their one copy they ordered still in stock. At least I have it now and can start reading. I'll be ordering several more copies as gifts for friends, and the library idea is great. I'll probably also get copies for the two local high schools.

I do agree with the Messianic lunacy diagnosis for Mikey. I think he really believes he is "special" and a victim and that somehow he will be vindicated by the huge following that he will develop once people just start to understand him. Like all of the other nut jobs that have come and gone, he will eventually fade into our cultural subconscious. This needs to not happen, though, until we have cleaned house and gotten the legal system moving back in a direction of integrity.

Anonymous said...

Yep. Mikey just loves his current "martyr" status!

I beg to differ with the "Messianic" reference, however. Messiah's purpose was to deliver His people.

Nifong's current strategy is that his people will deliver him.

Big difference.

Mikey loves his adoring throng (not a bunch I'd choose for dinner partners for sure) because they don't have any more brains than he does. Makes him look good.

I JUST PRAY that the City of Durham will turn down the offer from the 3.

This case NEEDS / BEGS to go to trial before an impartial jury.

Perhaps that will give Nifong a chance to PROVE HIS INNOCENCE.

Anonymous said...

I stopped after work on the 4th at B&N on Madison, Wisconsin's west side and got 'the last copy'. It was in the 'True Crime' section.

Anonymous said...

KC,

The following is a duplicate of an email sent earlier.

KC,

With regard to your request for local availability of Until Proven Innocent:

In the Phoenix AZ metro area there appears to be a distribution problem with Barnes & Noble. Of the 15 stores only 1 store has your book in stock:
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/store.asp?EAN=9780312369125&distance=&zipcode=85220&z=y Click link and change the search radius to 50 miles.


Also in the Phoenix metro area availability at Borders is somewhat limited. Of the 14 Borders stores, 4 have your book in stock. Below is a link to 6 of the stores (each inquiry is limited to 6 stores per inquiry). See the "Store Availability" box at the right of each page:
http://www.bordersstores.com/search/title_detail.jsp?id=56861497&srchTerms=Until+Proven+Innocent&mediaType=1&srchType=Title

Anonymous said...

Had to run down to Charlotte today to visit my grandchildren. Stopped in at a B+N at the Arboretum Mall..lady at Customer Service desk said they had one copy left...in the True Crime area. We went to look...not there ....but they will order. This has become a crusade for me...surely ONE of these book people must be capitalist.

Cannot be in Durham this week...other commitments...but would love to be.

trinity60

Anonymous said...

Is it possible to tell if it's a California problem, a publisher problem, or a B&N problem? (They're the only game in town.) But after scouting the Escondido store for a week, I went back to the desk. It took the sweet young lady a long time to find the title in the system, but when she looked up and offered, "We can order it for you," I couldn't hold back any longer:

"The justification for still having these anachronistic brick-and-mortar bookshops in the first place is to not have to order such things. If I have to order it, I may as well order it from Amazon or someplace. Goodbye."

And walked out. She was visibly cringing, but that may be a practiced response. Perhaps I owe an apology. Perhaps not. I see they display many copies of Bill Clinton's book they eventually won't be able to sell @ 30% off. Indeed, they're already being marked down.

-- No, not that Glenn

Anonymous said...

Great little boy, KC. Must take after his mother.

Anonymous said...

No copies of Until Proven Innocent found in either Hamilton or St. George's (Bermuda). Don't think I'll check the smaller villages. ;>)

Anonymous said...

KC<

Please let us know what is WRONG with your distribution system.

Something is REALLY messed up here.

This would have been the ideal weekend for your publisher to really push the book, what with the Nifong stroll etc.

What's up????

Debrah said...

TO 5:57Pm--

This is the disgusting part.

That creepy Bill Clinton book is in every B&N store window around. You have to keep checking on them to make sure UPI is in the window.

I'm in the Triangle and there was, understandably, more demand for the book right away.

It created lots of buzz this past week and they tell me it's still selling steadily.

The store I go to is supposed to display the book in the window again beginning Monday night because they now know the author will be at Duke on Tuesday.

And they have put it on a display table inside.

For how long......the story changes with the days.

I agree that B&N is difficult on this one, but the publisher should be making demands.

Debrah said...

The above should have been to (9:57PM).

Anonymous said...

On Saturday, September 8th, Barnes & Noble in Bethesda, MD told me that the two (yes 2) copies they had in stock of "Until Proven Innocent" had been sold. I'll try to shame them into ordering an acceptable number. Thanks for your excellent and diligent work in exposing this fiasco.
A Duke Alumn

Anonymous said...

Just tried to get your book at the B&N in Franklin, TN. No copies in stock. I would like to believe that it's because they sold all of the many copies they ordered but ......