Impeachment Trial Diary [Paperback]

Wil F. Huston (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 1999

The spectacle of Bill Clinton's impeachment trial fascinated and repulsed sociologist, author William Howton (Wil F. Huston), author of "Impeachment Trial Diary: How in five weeks that shook the world the bad guys lost."

Why now? Why Bill Clinton, when other presidents' extra marital affairs are legend? Howton asks and answers the question in this book with insight and care.

Impeachment Trial Diary is a diary kept by a witness of this one-in-two lifetimes event; his 'take' on happenings day-to-day plus thoughts, reflections, asides, pereginations. And on the 'takes' of others: what the talking heads on TV are making of developments and what's being said about him--not only by the Players themselves, but by pundits on the other programs who watch body language and parse words for clues.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

F. William Howton (Wil F. Huston) was born on April 1, 1925, in Portland, Oregon. Both of his parents were raised on farms. His father was a miner. His mother brought up four children, of whom he is the eldest. The author grew up for the most part in mining country: small towns in Arizona, Nevada and California.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army, and served overseas in the UK, France, and Germany, from 1943 through 1946, in an engineer depot company.

After the war, Howton began his education at the University of Arizona, and went on to complete his BA, MA and PhD in Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley.

His employment includes teaching at the College of Idaho; Human Factors scientist, developing the SAGE system of air defense at the System Development Corporation in Santa Monica; teaching at Los Angeles State College; and Department Chairman at the City University of New York.

Publications include "Mass Society in Crisis", New York, 1965; "The Functionaries", Chicago, 1969, plus numerous articles and essays.

Dr. Howton is currently working on his next book, a novella

Product Details

• Paperback: 186 pages
• Publisher: Redrock Press (July 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0967321603
• ISBN-13: 978-0967321608
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,862,585 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating perspective on a stomach-turning spectacle., October 26, 1999

By 

Jamie Pearson (Oakland, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Impeachment Trial Diary (Paperback)

As sick as I was of the impeachment trial, I found Huston's "sociologist spin" offered a new perspective. Namely, how could so many smart people get into such an incredibly stupid mess? Getting theoretically inside the heads of the main players made diving back into the topic worthwhile. Impeachment Trial Diary is destined to be the definitive work on a ridiculous episode in this nation's history.

3.0 out of 5 stars Different from Posner's "An Affair of State" this account is, October 18, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Impeachment Trial Diary (Paperback)

Different from Posner's "An Affair of State" this account is a more casual and personalized view of the Clinton-Lewinsky affair that spotlights the impeachment trial as it unravels day by day and does not focus on the entire "Year of the Monica." An entertaining and often amusing read by a retired City University of New York academic, and a modern-day Samuel Pepys.

4.0 out of 5 stars A bright and bitingly funny diary of the impeachment circus., October 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Impeachment Trial Diary (Paperback)

Huston is intelligent and witty as the ultimate outsider, sharing his thoughts as the trial unfolds on his TV screen. His streaming commentary often reads is like Mystery Science Theatre script as he lampoons the central figures -- from Monica ( the "groupie who wasn't clear on the concept. Hung around after she scored... not one to cower behind the door when the chutzpah was passed out") to Lindsay Graham ("...who comes across as a polite earnest young man...used to passing the time of day with old ladies sitting on porches sipping lemonade...coddled since birth by adoring parents and aunts and uncles and cousins, all of whom have agreed that this boy is wonderful.") to Ken "the doughboy" Starr. Even the media types covering the trial don't escape his acerbic gaze - witness "Nina Totenberg (not a lawyer, but unlike Cokie (Roberts), seems to play one on TV." A must read for those looking to find humor in a very sad situation.