More Dan Brown goofiness

[kay1864]

(Disclaimer: I liked The Da Vinci Code. Enjoyable thriller. However, I was disappointed to learn that he got so many historical facts wrong)

I also read Digital Fortress (Dan Brown's first book; not very good IMHO). I remembered how he heard about the NSA, which wasn't well-known in 1986*.

(This is from an interview, but the incident is detailed in the novel as well)

Q: A rather startling event inspired you to write Digital Fortress. Can you elaborate on what happened?

A: A few years ago, I was teaching on the campus of Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. One Spring day, unannounced, the U.S. Secret Service showed up and detained one of our students claiming he was a threat to national security. As it turned out, the kid had sent private E-mail to a friend saying how much he hated President Clinton and how he thought the president should be shot.

I've always wondered about this. The NSA can monitor emails? If so, why is this the only news story (to my knowledge) ever printed about someone getting a visit from the Secret Service due to an email? No one has typed a threat in an email since 1986?

So I decided to do some research on the Internets.

It turns out Dan's story isn't true. Didn't happen at Exeter, the NSA wasn't involved, and most important, it wasn't a "private email".

Two New Hampshire high school students are suspected of emailing a death threat to President Clinton.

The two 10th-graders were suspended from Profile High School here after the Secret Service said it had traced the email to the students. The email was sent January 13, Secret Service agent James Fitton said from his office in Concord, New Hampshire.

Bethlehem School Superintendent Robert Horan said the students claimed they never expected the message to reach the president. The email, which arrived at a White House Web site, was intercepted by the Secret Service and traced back to a Profile High computer lab.

The students were suspended until the end of the month and have been banned from logging on to the school's Internet computer server for the rest of their high school years.

Federal officials say they doubt criminal charges will be filed. "We're satisfied the school took appropriate action against the students," Fitton said.

http://news.com.com/2100-1017-264323.html?legacy=cnet

Yet another falsehood in a Dan Brown novel.

Oh well, I still like his books (except Digital Fortress, that is).



*Although Star Trek fans will recall that "Gary Seven" showed an NSA ID in a 1967 episode!

[Dangerously Amused]

1. And here I was expecting more adventures from our own dpbrown.

That dude is crazy!


:7

[dpbrown]

5. Frankly, so was I!!

Sometimes, I can't even keep up with myself!


:P

[RebelOne]

2. Go to his Web site

at www.danbrown.com. Quite a bit of interesting info there.

[kay1864]

3. Oh yes

Perused that shortly after finishing DVC. Glad to see pictures, esp. after A&D. And the two DVC quests are quite fun.

He granted very few (if any) interviews after DVC came out. I wonder if that will change, with the movie coming out.

And I wonder what his answers will be about the Priory of Sion.

[cemaphonic]

4. Angels and Demons drove me nuts.

Laughable historical and scientific problems on every other page, spouted by characters that are allegedly experts in these fields. An unwitnessed murder in Rome's Fountain of the Four Rivers. A plot McGuffin that had an extremely obvious solution.

Yeah, they are fun potboilers, but you really have to turn your brain off to keep sane while reading them.