Please use your back button
|
The Saga continues August 2001
|
| Professor Skip Klingman, the one who unwittingly forwarded the hoax
e-mail with his name attached writes the following:
-----Original Message----- First, my apologies for the misinformation. The e-mail which you received did not originate with me, and in no way involves my university. After receiving it myself in early Spring of this year (1999), I sent it to one of my friends, and wasn't aware that my e-mail "signature" was appended to it. My intent was not to have the e-mail forwarded as is stated in that document, but I didn't make that clear to my friend. He then forwarded the letter to an extensive address book without removing my name. I'm sure the fact of the name and contact information make the letter look completely valid to most people, and now the letter (with my name) is in wide circulation. Although I was in the military during the Vietnam years, I did not serve in combat, nor was I in Southeast Asia during the conflict. Many friends and acquaintances of mine did serve, and a couple didn't return. I would in no way want to diminish their contribution by making false claims. Much of the information in the e-mail has been difficult for me to personally authenticate, but writer David Emery has apparently researched this letter quite thoroughly. Dates are incorrect in a couple of instances. One thing is true; Jane Fonda did visit Hanoi and the POW camp in 1972, and she made accusatory statements against the U.S. government and military personnel that caused servicemen and their families a great deal of anguish. The stories about the subsequent torture and beatings are not all true, and since I have communicated personally with Col. (Ret.) Larry Carrigan, I have discovered that he never even saw Jane Fonda during her visit. Most of the letter is debunked in the website below. This was sent to me by a respondent who read the Fonda e-mail with my signature. I only wish I'd seen this before I sent the letter to my friend. It was my willingness to believe the worst of Jane Fonda that caused me to send it to him. http://urbanlegends.about.com/science/urbanlegends/library/weekly/aa110399.htm -- then search "Fonda" as a keyword for the link to the e-mail. This account is by David Emery. Jane Fonda, along with 99 other "Most Important Women of the Century" was honored by Barbara Walters in April '99, and subsequently by Ladies Home Journal magazine. (See following website) http://www.moorej.org/jane/ In the brief biographies of the women, their contributions were summarized. Fonda's anti-war activism is mentioned, but her film career and her success as a workout "guru" in her several videos were the major credits in Ms. Fonda's bio. Again, I'm sorry for the inadvertent "spamming" I've caused. I'd appreciate your sending back this information to the person from whom you received it, and I thank you in advance. Sincerely, Charles Klingman Note: It is possible that the original mess started with a reprint of a column by Jeff Jacoby of the Boston Globe which was carried in the June 23rd, 1999 Washington Times. We're trying to track this down.
NEXT STORY: The Bogus Jane Fonda Story In 1999 a shocking story about Jane Fonda and POW hit the Internet. This story was false although it contained many verifiable facts. The story has been repudiated by at least one of the POW named in the story. This story is now considered a hoax and has taken its place among other urban legends. You decide for yourself. I get a lot of e-mail on Jane Fonda, because I have clear and strong opinions about Fonda, and I occasionally write about her, and she is featured on my military web site. This all began in the summer of 1999 I received an e-mail containing this shocking story and I repeated it once or twice until Captain Mike McGrath, USN (Ret.) advised me that the POW involved had denied significant portions of the e-mail. I promptly informed my correspondents of this new development..... |