Letters to the Editor
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Four things...
1) When Patrick was running for Governor in 2006, he was accused of stealing Obama's rhetoric from 2004. Now Obama is accused of stealing from Patrick. Huh? Is it too hard to grasp that two men who have known each other for years, obviously have had many political discussions, might agree closely on many things, and riff off each other from time to time?
2) Trying to hold stump speeches to the same rules of formal essay citation is silly. How exactly would a footnote work in the spoken word? Some kind of hand gesture or vocal inflection?
3) Obama did not plagarise Patrick. He paraphrased. There is a difference. I will admit though, the argument is the same one Patrick used against Healy and Reilly when they tried this 'words don't matter' angle against him. Does this really mean that Obama can't use the same refutation because Patrick already did, regardless of how much he sincerely believes it to be both effective and true? That's like saying because my friend used a bridge to cross the river I have to swim.
4) FDR, whose famous line "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" was paraphrased almost exactly the same way from Henry David Thoreau, yet never credited. Does this make FDR a plagarist too?
5) And what about Clinton stealing her blockbuster line almost word for word from John Edwards? What's that? Somehow I don't think he gave her permission to use it, considering he hadn't dropped out of the race yet when she took it.