I'm fine with fiction -- so long as no one tries to sell it to me by advertising it as being a fact.  And the idea that a purely fictional tale "represents a fact" is mere sophistry in support of ideological propaganda.  Or perhaps more appropriately: a lie wrapped within a lie: and designed to sell books.

Nazi propaganda "represented a reality", in the world view of some.  The facts didn't matter -- the......cough cough........"underlying truth" did.  The reality of the facts doesn't matter so much as the "underlying reality" that the propagandist wishes to disperse to the masses.  And that's how political propaganda works.  The NYT's is a past master at the art of political propaganda.

I won't get into the specifics of the Iraq situation -- because if I did, then we'd end up arguing about hot-button contemporary politics.

Something To Do At 3:00AM