On Mon, Jan 26, 2009 at 8:06 AM, Mark J. <[email protected]> wrote: > Guardian film critic David Cox on why you'll never see the television > event that the Oscar-nominated film re-enacts--including a quite > critical description of how David Frost became a sellout after his > career-defining moment: > > http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2009/jan/26/frost-nixon-david
My eye was drawn to this phrase, near the end: "Well, Nixon pulled America out of Vietnam...". I have seen several similar descriptions in recent months, I guess mostly in similar attempts to give some kind of balanced view of Nixon in response to the Frost film. My consistent response to this claim; WTF? Nixon ran for president in 1968 claiming that he could end the war in Vietnam and bring peace with honor. When he ran again 4 years later the war was still going on (and he of course had engaged in secret and illegal bombings). US involvement in Vietnam did not end until 1973, 5 years after Nixon was first elected, on terms not that different from what he could have had during his first year in office. If we are still fighting a war in Iraq 5 years from now I don't think a prominent element in Obama's political obituary will be "he pulled America out of Iraq". I have not seen Frost/Nixon yet, but will soon and I am looking forward to it. I have been a little surprised though that the film (and apparently the play it was based on) seems to conclude that Frost was a hero for finally nailing Nixon. In the lefty circles my parents orbited in back in those days, the Frost interviews were always seen as letting Nixon off easily, and Frost was always seen as a lightweight. I think the equivalent to day would be if Bush agreed to an interview with Deborah Norville. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ TV or Not TV .... Smart (TV) People on Ice! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
