William M. Connolly Character Assassins

Annotation

CHARACTER ASSASSINS is a brief history of the consequences of bearingfalse witness. It tells how toxic talk has led to shunning, witch hunts,persecuti ons, false prosecuti ons, executi ons, pogroms, famines, wars andgenocides. From small acorns great oaks grow, and from small lies comepoisonous fruits: ruined reputati ons, divided neighborhoods, class hatreds,clan violence, ethnic cleansings and blood libels, preludes to the twenti ethcenturys worst horrors. The book criti cally examines various contemporaryevents. It details intellectual rot and corrupti on in Massachusett s federal andstate courts, prosecutors offi ces and law schools. It pinpoints deep seatedbiases, spin and false reporti ng in Bostons newspapers and radio talks shows. It proves Howie Carrs books are litt ered with falsehoods. It singles out Carrand Dershowitz as examples of chronic character assassins. Lies, ruin, disease,Into wounds like these,Let the truth sti ng!David Gray